Living Water
by My Father's Daughter
Summary: With an athletic scholarship to a US college, Haru cares little for the academic side of university. But when his slipping grade in a class jeopardizes his spot on the swim team, he is forced to rely on a classmate for help. She in turn quickly learns that nothing holds his attention for long unless it's water. So she figures out a tactic: relate everything back to H2O. Haru/OC.
1. Chapter 1

_"__Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, __but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will __**never thirst**__. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life."_

_~John 4:13-14_

Chapter 1

It all started when Haruka first learned how to sink.

"You know all you have to do is blow the air out of your lungs first, right?" his college teammate, John, asked him with a raised eyebrow.

Haruka looked up at him blankly from where he was standing in the campus pool, an automatic pool vacuum tucked under his arm. Evening practice had been over for twenty minutes and the sun was setting. As soon as everyone had cleared out, Haruka had gone to the maintenance closet and grabbed the pool vacuum. He was fed up with the incompetent lack of consistency with which _his_ precious pool was getting cleaned. How on earth was he supposed to feel _free_ when every lap he swam required staring at sticks and debris and—God forbid—band-aids, littering the bottom of the lanes? For once, he saw the wisdom behind his high school friend Mako's choice in the backstroke.

He supposed this was what he got for accepting a swimming scholarship to an American university, in California of all places…one surefire way to guarantee an outdoor campus pool. Not that the runaway band-aids ever lessened even in an indoor pool…what was WITH people always wearing band-aids into the pool?!

And so Haruka had dragged the pool vacuum over to the lanes, hooked it up, and promptly jumped into the pool with it. Which was totally unnecessary. The thing was automatic, after all.

John had lingered behind to see what his teammate was up to. He watched for a few minutes, unsurprised, as the raven-haired young man dove to the bottom of the pool and proceeded to manually push the vacuum along the bottom. After two and a half years of training together, John had become familiar with Haruka's odd hydrophilic tendencies that seemed to defy all reason and rationale. So he kept his mouth shut and didn't say the obvious—which was that the vacuum could run by itself, without anyone having to get in the water with it. However, once he noticed Haruka's awkward attempts to stay at the bottom without floating upwards, he could stay silent no longer.

As smooth as Haruka looked when he was swimming freestyle, he was now flailing like a penguin.

"Haven't you ever done this as a kid?" John continued, as Haruka stood in the pool, staring at the vacuum in his arm and processing his teammate's first statement. "Exhale all the air in your lungs, so you can sink to the bottom of the pool and just hang out there?"

Sink? Haruka hadn't even known that it was possible to sink in water (unless you were Rei). Floating had always come naturally to him.

Without a word, he promptly exhaled all the oxygen from his lungs, and dove back under with the vacuum. He found himself sinking easily to the bottom and staying there.

John waited patiently on deck as Haruka proceeded to steadily propel himself across the bottom of the pool like a sea cucumber on steroids, trailing the vacuum after himself. A minute later, the boy resurfaced.

"You don't have to wait up for me," he said to John stonily, his mouth barely out of the water.

John shrugged and turned to go. "Don't drown!" he called over his shoulder, then quietly laughed to himself at what an irony that would be.

Haruka sank back under the water, bubbles blowing out of his mouth as he released all of his air once more. This was a useful trick, he thought to himself as he looked up at the sky through the lens of water. Cleaning duty momentarily forgotten, he closed his eyes and splayed out languidly on the bottom of the pool. He was content. Now he could be fully submerged in the water, without any struggle. He could be one with the water. He could be free.

Forty seconds later this sentiment was shattered, when a disrupting splash erupted next to him and a pair of arms started to roughly pull him upwards.

* * *

Christine was typically a very calm individual. But she freaked out when she saw the body in the pool.

Sure, she had worked summers as a lifeguard back when she was still in high school. She had once even supervised a pool party for the little kids from her mother's church, all on her own. But all that meant was sitting lazily in a lifeguard chair and getting a tan. She never actually had to _save_ anybody before. All she ever had to save was a five pound brick in order to pass the lifeguard test.

A brick was not a human.

All these thoughts passed through her head in the space of a second. By then, she found that she had already impulsively kicked off her shoes. It seemed only logical, then, to run to the edge of the pool and dive in. So she did.

She had barely gotten her arms around the victim's torso when she suddenly remembered what the next step was supposed to be. Did she remember CPR? She frantically racked her brain. Kind of…? Not really. She was about to panic when something caught her attention.

The body she was lugging to the surface was not deadweight. In fact, said body was actually swimming…swimming out of her grasp. Swimming very capably.

She broke the surface and stared into deep blue eyes.

"Are you okay?" She gulped in air. "I thought—I thought you were—"

"You know," said the boy coldly—for it was a boy, she realized now. "I can swim."

She stared at him. Something clicked in her brain—a memory of one lone face in the back of her morning class, a recollection of whispered gossip in the hallways—and recognition dawned on her face.

"Haruka Nanase," she stated. "The kid from Japan with a full swimming scholarship."

He said nothing, just coolly returned her stare.

Christine was painfully aware of the irony of this situation. She had just tried to save someone, who was probably a hundred times better of a swimmer than she was, from drowning. She thought about laughing. But then she remembered that she was fully clothed, standing in the middle of a pool. In front of a guy in a Speedo. There was only one of them here who didn't look crazy, and she was losing any hope of it possibly being her.

To burst into laughter at this point would not win her any sanity points.

"Well." She tried to muster up the minimal amount of dignity that she had left. "This is embarrassing."


	2. Chapter 2

Haruka rarely showed up to his morning class. It was held on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and was right after morning practice. He often found it difficult to tear himself away from the pool, and instead preferred to play hooky by lingering in the water.

He barely even knew what the class was. Upon entering the last semester of his third year, the registration counselor had pointed out that he still needed a Humanities course to fulfill his degree requirements. Most biology majors got the unwanted courses out of the way during their freshman year, but Haruka just hadn't cared. He didn't particularly care about biology either, but a teacher back in high school had pointed out that he could do a focus in marine biology. Which didn't sound so bad.

But because Haruka was disinclined to put any effort into registering for classes until the last minute, he had been left with only one eligible Humanities course to choose from. It was the only one that fit into the rest of his schedule and still had seats open. Some dinky little class in the Religious & Cultural Studies department.

He was only in class this morning because, two weeks earlier, the professor had pulled him aside after one of his rare appearances to class.

_"Mr. Nanase, are you aware that attendance counts for part of your grade?" she had demanded._

_ He told her that he had been unaware._

_ "Oh?" she said, irritated by his lack of concern. "Then are you also unaware that a prerequisite to your swimming scholarship is that you pass all your classes?"_

_ This got his attention._

_"And," she continued, "Let me remind you that all students are required to keep up their grades to be eligible for a sport or extracurricular activity. Do you understand?"_

_ He gazed at the ground and nodded slowly. "I understand."_

_ Any questions, Mr. Nanase?"_

_ "Yes." He looked back up. "What is this class again?"_

So here he was in class. He struggled again to remember what it was called. Something with far too many words. He pondered for a moment until it came to him. _The Bible as Literature_. Wait, that didn't seem right. Wasn't it, _Intro to the New Testament_? It must be a combination of the two. _The Bible as Literature: Intro to the New Testament_. Yes, that was it. Far too many words indeed. Small wonder it was harder to remember than, say, _Biology 101._

His attention turned to the seat in front of him where Christine was sitting. Before the start of class, the girl had greeted him with a polite "Hey Haruka," as she had every Tuesday and Thursday since their awkward encounter two weeks ago. He never responded back, but by the second week he deigned to give her a nod of acknowledgment in return. Rather monumental, from him at least.

He found it curious that she greeted him at all, after such an embarrassing first introduction. One would think that she would ignore his presence and pretend that he didn't exist. After all, that was what he had been prepared to do to her. Not that that would have been any different from how he would have treated her anyway, since that was what he did to everyone.

"Please pick up your graded midterms at the front before you leave." The professor's voice rang out. "Class dismissed!"

Haruka made his way to the front of the classroom, picked up his test, and turned to go. The big red letter at the top of his paper gave him pause though. He stopped and did a double take. The big red letter was an E.

Haruka swiftly did some mental calculations. He had skipped half of the classes so far. This midterm counted for thirty percent of his grade. Another sixty percent would be determined from a final paper and the final exam. If he bombed either one, his scholarship would be pulled. If he failed the class altogether, he would no longer be eligible to be on a sports team. He came to a final conclusive equation: Failing class = No more swimming.

His mind came to a standstill. This class was supposed to be easy. This class was supposed to take no effort. It was one of those classes that you took only to fulfill a general education requirement for your degree. Or at least, that was how it was supposed to be. Haruka should have known better. His English had never been that great (much to his old high school teacher, Miss Miho Amakata's, chagrin). But it was passable. Once he came to university, he had put off taking any class with extensive reading assignments for as long as he could, focusing instead on math and science courses. But he had to take a humanities course eventually. Haruka figured that, after two and a half years in the states, his English reading comprehension would be pretty competent by now. And maybe it would have been…if not for all the _thee_'s and _thy_'s and _be not thou_ this and that.

He had been schooled in the basics of conversational English from a fairly young age. This in no way prepared him for reading 14th century style Old English that had been translated from Greek. Or whatever it was. He had never liked reading in the first place. For the text to be convoluted in such a way that it didn't match up to modern English syntax made it even less appealing. Haruka was never one to put more effort into something than seemed appealing. He had taken one look at an assigned reading and decided to go to swim practice instead. There was always Sparknotes, right?

Unfortunately his lack of consistent attendance caused him to be unaware that, on one of the days that he randomly showed up, it was in fact the scheduled midterm date—and he was not prepared in the least. Well, at least he had showed up on that day at all. That was downright lucky, wasn't it? In characteristic unconcerned fashion, he had breezed through the multiple choice questions and made up answers for the open-ended ones. He ended up turning in his test before anyone else and walking out of class early. (That day the pool got three visits from him, instead of just two.)

The result was that a big, red "E" was now staring him in the face, along with his diminishing hopes and dreams to swim freely. He now realized that this was _not_ one of those classes that took no effort. This was _not_ one of those classes that you could just skip all the time and still pass. And he had _no_ idea what was going on in class…and thus, he was _not_ going to pass.

Haruka had never prayed before, but now he was starting to consider it. The bitter thought occurred to him that if he had ever been the sort of person to pray in the first place, then maybe he would have known enough about the New Testament to at least pass this midterm. Maybe it wasn't too late to start.

He figured that, if there was a God, then this had to be a prayer that He wouldn't pass up. Getting Haruka to pass this class meant getting him to understand enough of the assigned reading—in this case the New Testament, as providence would have it—in order to pass the exam. God's Word would be read, and Haruka would get to swim. It was a win-win, right?

Let it never be said that Haruka was a complete cynic. Sure, he usually looked like one, and yes, he wasn't one to believe that anything could be that easy—Alright, so Haruka was quite a bit of a cynic. But water was on the line here.

_God_, thought Haruka cynically, _Please help me pass._

"Are you okay?" said a voice from behind him. A voice that, when it had first spoken to him, had said these same three words. "You look shell-shocked."

Haruka turned to see Christine. She noticed the paper in his hands.

"Huh," she said, surprised. "Wouldn't have thought a scholarship kid would end up with a grade like that."

He bristled. "It's a sports scholarship," he said coldly. "Not an academic scholarship." He vaguely wondered if he had just insulted his own intelligence.

Christine held up her hands. "Sorry," she placated, "I didn't mean it as an insult. I know you're not in class a lot…so you probably just missed a lot of the info that was on the test."

Haruka thought it was charitable of her to ignore the fact that he should have still read the text on his own. But he didn't say so.

"And I know you guys have to practice twice a day," she went on, "Which is pretty crazy. I'd probably go back to sleep after practice, too."

He likewise didn't inform her that he, in fact, just stayed in the pool after practice.

Instead he said, "If I fail this class, I won't get to swim anymore." And then he immediately wondered why he had just said that.

Maybe it was just natural human tendency, in moments of stress, to open up about one's own miseries. Maybe it was because the mere thought of not getting to swim anymore had dried up some of his brain cells, and consequently loosened his tongue. Maybe it was because his brain had shut down, and the only cohesive thought remaining blared through his head like a siren: FAILING CLASS = NO MORE SWIMMING.

Christine stared at him. "So pass," she said simply.

Haruka scowled. The girl reminded him irritatingly of Miss Amakata. When he had Ama-sensei for classical literature in his last year of high school, she had constantly expressed her consternation over his lack of effort in her class. He wondered now if he should have paid more attention to the quotes she used to expound upon. Particularly the ones from the Bible.

"Easy for you to say." He glared at Christine. "I'm not cut out for dense reading."

She glanced at the copy of the Bible that Haruka had tucked under his arm.

"That's the King James Version you have," she declared, pulling out her own copy and holding it up to his face. "I guess you missed the first day of class, when the professor recommended getting contemporary translations for easier reading?"

Haruka stared at her dumbly.

She gave him a look of sympathy. "Here," she said, taking his copy out of his arm and replacing it with her own. "Let's trade. I've got a pretty good grasp on the text already, so I'll be fine with the King James Version."

He held out the new book with an expression of extreme distaste. This turn of events did not solve the root problem.

"I don't like to read," he confessed monotonously. It occurred to him belatedly that he was supposed to have said _Thank you_ instead.

To his surprise, she laughed. "Alright," she said, "I can help you out some time. I guess it doesn't get any easier when English isn't even your first language, right? If you want, I'll go through all the important points that should be on the exam, and summarize any dense parts for you. What do you say?"

Haruka gave her a look wavering between disbelief and distrust.

"Why would you help me?" he asked.

She shrugged. "Consider it recompense for disrupting your nap in the pool the other day," she joked. "But seriously, it looked like a bomb had hit you when you got your test back…and you usually don't look anything less than totally stoic. So I'm guessing that something pretty important to you is at stake. Given the class, I thought it'd be appropriate to act biblically." She smiled, and quoted, "'_Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.'_"

Haruka gave her a funny look. She sighed.

"That was from the class text, and it means to help others," she explained. "Which, by the way, happens to be a recurring theme in the New Testament. There's your first tip, so take notes. That verse was from, uh, Galatians, or something." She tapped her chin in thought. "Or is it Philippians? Doesn't matter, we won't be tested on locating verses. This isn't a seminary." She grinned. "So what do you say?"

Haruka hesitated a moment. "We could meet after I get out of practice," he said slowly.

He was beginning to wonder where he would be if he had never learned how to sink.


	3. Chapter 3

Christine had never met someone with as powerful of an ability to space out as Haruka Nanase. He was almost as talented at it as he was at swimming. And it seemed that he insisted on doing either one or the other whenever she tried to teach him something.

The first day that they met up was after one of Haruka's swim practices, and he had insisted on staying in the water while she lectured him from the poolside. Five minutes in, he had suddenly noticed something of interest at the bottom of the pool and swam off.

The second time they met up was at Haruka's dorm. No sooner had she summarized a page than Haruka had stood up, announced that he was hungry, and wandered into the kitchen to cook some mackerel.

Today was their third attempt to get something done. They were in the library, in a quiet corner by the window. Haruka had been staring out of it the whole time that she was talking.

"Hello? Earth to Haruka!" She waved a hand in his face. "Did you catch any of what I just said?"

He turned to her, big blue eyes unblinking.

"No," he answered honestly.

She sighed, before choosing the route of patience. "You seem awfully distracted," she remarked. "What's on your mind?"

"The fit of my new swimsuit."

Christine looked skyward. "Lord help me," she muttered under her breath. More loudly, she said, "Okay, I know this subject matter is not your cup of tea. But I need you to focus. Just remember that you need to get this if you want to stay on the swim team."

Haruka's eyes widened by a fraction, and she knew that she had him.

"Alright, as I was saying," She went back to her notes. "The account of Jesus walking on water appears in three of the four gospels and—"

"What?"

She looked up. "What?" she asked back, confused.

Haruka was frowning. "Why would Jesus walk on water?"

"Er…" She didn't know where he was going with this. "Well, it's supposed to be a demonstration of divinity, as well as a lesson of…"

"Why would he choose to be _on_ the water, instead of _in_ the water?" Haruka clarified.

Christine wondered if the boy had heard what she had just said. "Haruka," she said slowly, "No one would have considered it a miracle if he was _swimming._"

The corners of his mouth turned down even further. "_I_ would've been more impressed," he said.

Christine closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and measured what her next words would be. Meanwhile, Haruka had turned the pages in his text to the passage in question. He skimmed its contents.

"Peter ends up in the water," he noted. "It says he starts to sink."

Christine opened her eyes. "Yes," she agreed, thankful that they were starting to get somewhere. "He sees the storm around him and gets afraid. So he becomes doubtful and freezes up."

Haruka became thoughtful. The ghost of a memory flickered through his eyes.

"Like Mako in the ocean," he murmured.

"Um, what?" said Christine.

"Nothing." Haruka schooled his features back into a neutral expression.

Christine briefly wondered what a "mako" was and if it was a type of Japanese fish.

"Well, Peter is fine in the end," she said, pointing to the page he had just read. "See? Jesus grabs a hold of him and pulls him out of the water, saying, _'__O you of little faith, why did you doubt?__'_"

"I suppose that's forgivable," Haruka said. "Given the circumstances."

"What's forgivable?"

"Pulling him out of the water. Since he might have drowned otherwise."

Christine just looked at him. With some effort, she decided to address the topic at hand, rather than Haruka's glaringly skewed perspective.

"Remember these next few bits. They will probably be on the test." She looked at her notes. "This particular miracle is supposed to illustrate Christ's ability to carry a person through the metaphorical storms of life. Also, the part when Peter sinks is important to note because the next thing he does is cry out for Jesus to save him. That's a theme that will come up repeatedly throughout the New Testament."

She paused for a moment, pleasantly surprised to see that the boy in front of her was actually taking notes. She looked back at her outline, pondering what she could discuss next that would keep him focused. It was starting to become apparent to her that the only thing that held Haruka's attention was water. The sound of a splash or even the mention of water could turn his head.

Inspiration hit her.

"Let's talk about when Jesus turns water into wine," she suggested. "It's His first recorded miracle and will probably be on the test as well."

"Why?" Haruka demanded without missing a beat.

She blinked in startled confusion. "Why will it be on the test? Because it was the first—"

"Why did he change the water?" He corrected, looking mildly offended by the very notion. "Water is just fine as it is."

Christine was suddenly aware that she was treading in dangerous territory. "Well," she began carefully, "It was at a wedding, and they had run out of wine."

He frowned deeply, clearly disapproving of this. "Then they should've just drunk water."

She stared, realizing her mistake in choosing this topic. It might have been the right Bible story to quote to frat kids, but clearly not to this guy.

"That's an…interesting perspective, Haruka," she said slowly. "But just try to remember it for the test. Okay? Anyway, moving on," she added quickly before he could interject. "Let's talk about…uh…" She desperately scanned her notes until a word caught her eye. _Baptism_.

Surely he would like this one.

"Let's talk about the concept of baptism," she said. "That will definitely be on the test."

Sure enough, his eyes lit up a little bit. "That's when someone gets water poured over them, right?"

"Yes," agreed Christine, somewhat relieved that he was finally responding positively. "Or they can get fully immersed in water, the way John the Baptist originally did it. The physical act is supposed to be symbolic of a person being washed clean of their old life and accepting a new life in Christ, just like—"

"I'm in," Haruka declared, standing up. "Let's do it."

She started. "Wait, what?"

He was already starting to walk away.

"Hey!" she called after him. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Getting baptized."

"_Where?_" she demanded.

He looked back at her like she was stupid. "The pool." He turned to leave.

"Wait," she cried. He didn't stop. She went after him. "Hey. _Stop._" She grabbed him by the wrist, bringing him to a halt. He turned to her.

"Listen," she said, letting go of him, "I know you'd rather not be here. I know you'd rather go swim. But, if we can't get you to pass this class, you won't _get_ to swim anymore. Well, on the team anyway." She paused. "You do know that if worse comes to worse and you fail the class, you can still swim, right? Even if it's not on a team."

He was silent, giving her only an aloof stare.

"We don't have to do this if you don't want to," She gestured back at the desk with their books. "I'm not forcing you to pass the class. No one is. If the thing that's important to you is just to swim, then no one is going to stop you. And the world won't end from you failing one class, right?"

He still didn't say anything, but something changed in his eyes and he looked away. This didn't pass her notice. She continued.

"If it's important to you to stay on the team though…" She noticed him look up at this. "Then I'm willing to help you make that happen. The choice is entirely up to you."

He seemed to mull this over, before finally mumbling something. "Being on a team is…it would give me—more opportunities to swim."

"That's your way of admitting that it's actually important to you, isn't it?" she observed. He didn't respond, so she let it slide. "Does this mean you want me to keep helping you?"

Instead of answering, he simply returned to where he had been sitting. Hiding a small smile, Christine followed him back and seated herself across from him.

She pondered over where to go from here. So far she had deduced that the only topics he would pay attention to were ones pertaining to water. But it was a hit or miss on whether a remark would either be offensive to his hydrophilic sensibilities, or send him running to the pool.

She decided to take a gamble.

"Alright, something the text talks about a lot," she began, watching him carefully for his reaction, "Is living water."

Haruka looked at her. Sunlight from the window reflected off the blue of his eyes, and his irises did that funny quivering thing that she noticed they did whenever he looked at the pool.

"The water...is alive," he said slowly, as if reciting something.

Christine paused. She wondered if he was trying to be poetic, or if he had just drunk too much pool water.

"Well…yes, in the text," she conceded. "Living water is essentially Christ and the power of His Spirit. In the physical world, all living things require water to survive, right? And you need water to wash things clean. Yes?"

Haruka nodded slowly. This was the kind of language that he could understand.

Christine continued, "The same concept is applied in a spiritual sense to living water…it gives spiritual life, and washes people clean of their burdens and bonds."

"So," he began, tentatively, "Living water makes people…_free_."

"Yes." She beamed at him. The kid wasn't so hopeless after all. "You'll need to be able to reference that to some text. Here," She reached over and flipped the pages in his book. "Book of John…where is it?" Her eyes scanned the page. "Ah. Okay, so here Jesus is talking to a Samaritan woman by the well and he tells her that he can give her 'living water.'" She pointed, then dragged her finger down a couple verses and continued. "And then here, he's talking about the water in the well and he says: _'Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again,__but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.'_"

"Never thirst?" Haruka repeated.

"As in never feel thirsty again," she explained.

He looked at her with a dead serious expression. "Where can I get water like that?" he demanded.

"Funny, that's pretty much what the Samaritan woman says next," said Christine, then added dryly, "You could be her in a church play."

Instead of responding, Haruka gently pulled the book from her fingers and began reading the rest of the passage.

Christine smiled knowingly at him. "I bet I know what you're going to write your final paper on."


	4. Chapter 4

It was strange how quickly a month could fly by. It was also strange, at least to Haruka, how a friendship could creep up on him without him knowing or agreeing to it.

"This is my friend Haruka," Christine had introduced him as to her roommate, when he arrived at her dorm to study.

_Friend?_ Haruka was not aware of when this had been established. Not that he was necessarily averse to the idea, just surprised that she considered him as such. He had never actually done anything to warrant Christine's friendship, besides continually test her patience with his water-centric ADD.

It felt like only a few days had gone by since she had started helping him. A few days of meeting after practice, which soon turned into weekends, which gradually turned into every other day. The reason being that they never seemed to get quite enough done. Too often, Christine would just patiently stand by and watch as Haruka jumped into whatever body of water was nearby.

"Alright Haru," said Christine as she led him to her desk, "Did you start on your paper yet?"

Haruka paused. _Haru?_ When had she started calling him that?

Wordlessly, he withdrew a piece of paper from his bag and held it out to her. It had his name on it and was titled, "Living Water." Below it was a single sentence that had been crossed out. The words, "The water is alive," were visible beneath the line drawn through it.

Christine stared at it.

"So…is that all you have so far?" she asked evenly.

He nodded. She didn't say anything for a moment, and he wondered if she was struggling with the urge to kick him out. When she finally spoke though, her voice was laced with calm.

"Okay," she said, "Do you know what quotes you're going to cite from the text?"

"The ones about water," he answered.

"Of course," she said tiredly, "But which ones? There's a lot to choose from."

He looked at her blankly. "There is?"

"Oh yeah, tons," she replied. "You can see for yourself. Look up the word 'water' in the concordance, in the back of your Bible."

He did as he was told. When he got to the designated page, his eyes widened. The number of cited verses took up almost two whole columns.

"Your eyes are doing that quivering thing again." Christine said.

He looked at her. "What?"

"Never mind."

He returned his attention to the book in his hand, flipping to a page to read. A memory of his first day on campus drifted into his mind. He remembered being stopped by a campus missionary and invited to a bible study. He had declined, saying that he wasn't interested. He wondered now why the other student hadn't just told him upfront that there was an abundance of water imagery in the Bible.

Christine was observing him now with curiosity as he avidly read. "I know some Bible-thumping parents who would've killed to be able to use that trick on their kids," she remarked.

He didn't respond. It occurred to him that Christine might be talking about her own parents. That would explain why she seemed so capable of explaining the text to him. He wondered if every time he zoned out on her, he was potentially insulting her personal beliefs.

She looked over his shoulder at the page he was reading.

"Hey," she protested, "You're in the Old Testament. This class is _Intro to The New Testament_. Get with the program."

He looked up. "But there are more quotes to use from the Old Testament."

"Naturally," said Christine, exasperated. "The Old Testament is, what, four times the size of the New? Just count yourself lucky that you don't have to study that too, or else you'd be screwed. Now, focus!"

He exhaled heavily in irritation. "Fine." Reluctantly, he flipped back to the New Testament. They sat for a few moments in silence as he read.

"Look, Haru," Christine finally spoke up. "Not that I don't like sitting here and, uh, watching you read the Bible, but this is not a good use of my time. You can do that on your own. Right now I should quiz you on things that'll be on the exam."

Haruka put down the book. "Fine," he said again.

"Alright," She turned to her notes. "Let's see if you remember this from last week. If you come across a question on the test asking you to list some of the names or terms used to describe Jesus, you would say…?"

"The Living Water," he answered immediately.

"Not what most people would list first," she noted without surprise, "But it counts. What else?"

He gave her a blank look. She sighed, defeated.

"Come on, Haru. We went over this. There's like a dozen different ones to choose from. The way, the truth and the life. The light. The Word. Remember John chapter 1? '_In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and_'…Haru. Are you spacing out again?"

Haruka turned his attention away from the dolphin poster on the wall, and back to the girl in front of him. He briefly thought about lying, before deciding that it would be futile.

"Yes," he admitted.

Christine looked to where he had been looking. Slowly, she put her head in her hands.

"Haru," she began, "I'm glad there's something in the text that keeps you interested. Really, I am. But you're not going to pass this class if the only parts you know are about water." She sat upright. "Let's try this again. And you should get it right this time because I literally just gave you the answers a second ago. What are some things Jesus is known as?"

Haru opened his mouth to answer.

"_Besides_ living water," she added quickly.

He shut it again. A moment of silence passed.

Christine suddenly stood up. He wondered if this was it, if he had pushed her composure to the breaking point. But, instead of throwing something at him or telling him to leave, she walked to the window.

"Come here," she ordered.

He obeyed, getting to his feet to join her. She threw open the curtains. Bright sunlight flooded in, and he squinted at first until he realized what was before his eyes.

"The ocean," he murmured in wonder. She had a perfect view of the sea.

"That's right, little mermaid." She smiled. "Our campus is right next to it, remember?"

Of course he remembered. It was one of the reasons he chose this school.

"See how the waves catch the sunlight?" She pointed. "Ever notice how many butterflies there are flying over the ocean? It's because they're attracted to the high amount of UV light in the water. So," she turned to him, "Water can hold light. Just like the Living Water holds light…'the Light' that is Christ."

Haruka mulled this over. Somehow his mind seemed to be able to retain information better when she put it like that.

"Okay," he said slowly, "Christ is known as the light. What part of the text do I need to remember to back that up?"

Christine beamed at him. It was a look that she seemed to reserve for him whenever he finally cooperated. She went to retrieve the Bible.

"A Jesus quote from John 8 verse 12," she said when she returned to his side, and read aloud, "_'I am the light of the world. He who follows me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.'_" She snapped the book shut. "Okay so to remember that, just think of it like this: _Water_ gives life. Christ gives life. _Water_ holds light. Christ holds light. Hence, the '_water_ of life' equals Christ equals the 'light of life.'"

He was acutely aware that she had deliberately stuck the word 'water' into every other sentence, thus forcing his brain into cooperation. He nodded. "Got it."

"Great. Now as for Him being known as The Word," She flipped some pages. "Just think of this quote from Ephesians: _'That He_—God—_might sanctify and cleanse her_—His people—_with the washing of water by __**the word**_.' So," she started to spell it out for him again, "They're washed clean by The Word, which is Christ, just like—"

"Like water washes things clean," Haruka finished.

"Bingo." She grinned. "Shall I make flash cards for you?"

He gave a noncommittal shrug. Inwardly though he felt a sense of relief. He was starting to have faith that he might pass this class after all.

And, not for the first time, he thought how lucky it was that Christine had stopped him from sinking—in more ways than one.


	5. Chapter 5

"Not very friendly, is he?" Christine's roommate, Rose, commented one day after Haruka had left.

"Why do you say that?" asked Christine as she removed the sheet that was covering their fishbowl.

"He never talks. Also, WHY do we always have to hide all the water whenever he comes over?"

"Trust me," said Christine, "The kid has major ADD if he sees so much as a drop of H2O. Makes my job a lot harder."

"But it's not your job," Rose pointed out. "You're not getting paid." She huffed. "He could at least be a little nicer. This was the third time he came over and he still hasn't said a word to me. And from what I hear from your little tutoring sessions, he doesn't say much to you either."

"True," Christine agreed as she retrieved their water pitcher from the closet. "But when he does say something, he's always honest."

Rose scoffed. "Whatever. You're too gullible, Christine. You let people walk all over you. He should be paying you for all the time you've put into helping him study. I mean, has he even said 'thank you'?"

Christine took a moment to formulate her answer. "I can tell he's relieved that someone is helping him," she said slowly. "And you know that I enjoy teaching this kind of stuff anyway. Sometimes he develops genuine interest in what we talk about. That, along with his lack of pretense, are far more fulfilling to me than a false show of gratitude."

Rose just sighed. "Flowery words, Christine. I don't know how you manage to defend someone who seems to have no redeeming qualities. Well," she gave Christine a look, "Besides being kind of cute, I guess."

Christine wondered if being a phenomenal swimmer counted as a redeeming quality, but decided that that was irrelevant. Instead she said, "Lots of guys at this school are 'kind of cute.'"

"Exactly!" Rose exclaimed. "So I don't get why you're giving him special attention." She scrutinized Christine again. "Do you like him? Is that it?"

Christine paused, before looking her friend squarely in the face. "Like him romantically?"

"Yes."

Her lips twitched upwards in a sly smile. "You just said that he has no redeeming qualities. Are you trying to insult me?"

Rose threw up her hands. "Okay, fine. You're not the dating type, I get it. Learned my lesson after dragging you on one too many _disastrous_ double dates. You're a terrible wingwoman by the way, you know that? But that's beside the point. What's so much better about this guy that you keep on hanging out with him? I've introduced you to loads of guys, and you never end up being friends with them."

Christine thought about it. It wasn't something she had reflected on yet.

"I guess it's because he feels…" She searched for the right word. "Safe."

Rose quirked an eyebrow. "That's not usually a compliment for a guy."

"I mean _I_ feel safe around him," Christine clarified. "Okay, I guess that's not the best word. What I mean is…I don't have to pretend anything, with Haru. Everything's straightforward with him. There's no expectation for me to flirt, or ask him about himself, or laugh if he tries to make a joke. Which he never does, because he's completely apathetic—"

"You're not selling this guy very well—"

"—and so when I do ask him about himself, it's because I actually want to know. And when I do laugh, it's because he did something crazy like jump into the aquarium again—"

"Wait, he did _what_?"

Christine backpedaled. Rose didn't need to know about that bizarre incident. "The point is that there's no artifice about him. If he doesn't care about something, he won't pretend to care and ask about it just to be polite. So when he does ask something, you know that he's genuinely interested. I know most people would call that asocial," she admitted, "But personally, that's the sort of candor I look for in a friend, because it makes me feel freer to be myself."

"Which I wish you would be less of when we go on double dates," Rose teased. "Can I just say again how awkward it was when Brian told a joke and you were completely silent?"

"What, I smiled!" protested Christine.

"That is _not_ enough!"

Christine sighed. "This is exactly what I mean," she complained.

Rose clicked her tongue. "Well, when you put it like that, I guess you two are just perfect for each other," she quipped. "Mr. & Mrs. Stoic Silence."

"I am not stoic, and we are _not_ Mr. and Mrs." Christine gave Rose a look before continuing, "However, I will say it's true that silence never feels awkward with him, like it feels with everyone else." She smiled at her roommate then. "Except for you. You know you're the only other person I feel that way with?"

Rose threw a pillow at her. "Don't you get sappy with me." But she couldn't help but grin.

Christine caught the pillow with a laugh. A beat passed in quiet contemplation before she suddenly sighed heavily.

"What?" Rose prompted.

"I'm worried about that kid," Christine confessed. "There's only a couple weeks left in the semester, and I'm not sure how he'll do. If he fails and gets kicked off the swim team, I think he might try to do something stupid like drown himself in an attempt to be one with the water."

"Uh, disregarding just how _weird _that statement is," began Rose, "It'd be pretty embarrassing for you if he failed after you spent over a month helping him."

Christine threw Rose's pillow back at her.

"Oof!" Rose fell onto her bed. "Okay, okay, sorry! What makes you think he might fail, anyway? I thought you said you guys had a breakthrough the other day when he started paying more attention."

"We did," said Christine. "But he's been less attentive and more restless since then." She sat down on her bed, looking thoughtful. "I wonder if he feels like he's drying up here because I hid all the water."

"Who is this guy, Aquaman?"

"Might as well be," she groaned, collapsing back onto her bed.

"Well, tutor him by the poolside then," Rose suggested. "Since that seems to be his secret power source or something. It's like he's Superman and the pool is his sun."

"If only it were that easy," Christine remarked. "I can't teach him anything if he's too busy swimming."

"Hmm…" Rose brainstormed for a moment before lighting up. "I got it! Chain him to the wall and let him have a lap every time he gets an answer right."

Christine stared at her roommate. "He's not Shamu from SeaWorld."

"They chained up Shamu from SeaWorld?!" Rose looked horrified.

"No. I don't know. That's not the point." Christine shook her head to clear it. "Stop getting off subject. You're as bad as Haru."

Rose scoffed. "Fine. Take him to the fountain in the park by our dorm, then. If it's a smaller body of water, he can't get far from you."

Christine considered it. It was a good point, but… "It's a bit of a catch-22. On the one hand he can't concentrate unless there's water involved. But on the other hand…he can't concentrate _if_ there's water involved."

Rose shook her head. "Out of all the fish in the sea, you had to catch this one," she noted dryly.

"Stop that," said Christine sternly. "I haven't _caught_ anyone."

"Oh come on, that was funny," Rose grinned. Christine just rolled her eyes.

"Get it?" Rose persisted. "'Cause he likes water!"

"Hilarious," Christine deadpanned.

Rose sighed dramatically. "You clearly have no appreciation for my wit." She returned to the topic at hand. "So what are you going to do about the guy?"

Christine thought it over. "I guess the fountain is worth trying. He's earned himself some water time anyway. Maybe it will help him get focused again." She reached for her phone to send him a text.

"Look at you, setting up a study date by a water fountain," Rose smirked. "How romantic."

Christine ignored her, quickly typing a message into her phone and hitting 'send'.

"And you know, even though you were a _terrible_ wingwoman for me," Rose continued, "I'm willing to be a good one for you. If you need me for anything just let me know." She gave another smirk. "What's that Bible quote that you always use as an excuse for being so wishy-washy? Something about doing good for others and expecting nothing in return? I figured I'd be like that for you this time."

Christine was aware that there was a thinly veiled insult in there somewhere, but decided to look at the silver linings.

"Thanks," she said. "I think."


	6. Chapter 6

"Haru, please exit the water fountain," Christine commanded calmly but firmly.

Haruka ignored her from where he was laying in the middle of the fountain, eyes closed. He had found the perfect spot. A cascade of water from the fountain's center spout was pouring right onto him.

He heard a heavy sigh from where Christine was standing, and then the sound of her footsteps wading into the water towards him. He cracked an eye open at her as she crouched down next to him. She had an umbrella in one hand and a Bible in the other.

"Very well," she said, opening up her umbrella to shield the book from the falling water. "We'll study right here."

Haruka closed his eyes again. That was just fine by him.

Christine paused. "Do you seriously not care how ridiculous we look right now?"

"I don't see what's wrong with how we look."

"Of course you don't," muttered Christine, then added thoughtfully, "I suppose that's a rather biblical concept—appearing foolish to the rest of the world. Let me find the pertaining verse."

Haruka heard her flipping pages for a while. Opening his eyes, he saw that she was struggling to do so with one hand while holding the umbrella. Without a word he reached up and took the umbrella for her.

"Thanks," she said, a bit surprised, before turning back to the page she was on. "Okay here are some verses, in first Corinthians: "_'Because the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom…God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise.'_"

He rolled his head over in the water to look at her. "Did you just call me a fool?"

"Wait, you paid attention to what I just said?" She looked shocked. "Wow, water really _is_ like your sun."

"What?" That made _no _sense.

"Nothing. I'm just glad that you're able to stay focused." She settled into a position on her knees to keep her shorts out of the water. "Let's keep it that way. On to the next point…"

Ten minutes later, Haruka had to admit that she had spoken to soon. He struggled to bring his attention back to her.

"Sorry," he interrupted her, "What did you just say?"

She stopped and gave him a hard look. "What was the last thing you heard before I lost you?"

"Something nonsensical about water being the sun."

Christine dragged a hand down her face in frustration.

"Okay, fine," she said, recovering quickly. "Let's back up and review what we already know. Tell me something about living water."

"Jesus said, _'He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water,'_" he quoted perfectly.

She looked stunned. "O-oh wow. You memorized a verse."

"You said I needed to for the test," he stated matter-of-factly. "I don't understand it though. Water doesn't come out of the heart."

She laughed, somewhat exasperated. "You seem to constantly forget that the text is meant to be applied on a spiritual dimension, not a physical one." She flipped to the verse in question. "Remember the verse afterwards? It says He's talking about His Spirit."

"But why would _His_ Spirit flow out of someone else's body?" Haruka asked. He congratulated himself for staying on topic. Though to be fair, it was only because he liked the idea of water having spirit.

"Well, remember how the text frequently refers to people as "vessels"? It's meant to illustrate them as vessels for His Spirit, and…"

Haruka turned his gaze to the center of the fountain as Christine continued to explain. What she was saying sounded vaguely familiar, like something that they might have gone over before…but he wasn't quite sure. Was that on the day that he had jumped into the aquarium? He wondered why they had never gone back there to study. It had been his suggestion to meet up there, and he still thought that it was a brilliant study spot. So was where they were now too, actually. He was relieved that Christine was no longer insisting that they study only at her dorm. For some reason, he started feeling dehydrated every time he went there.

He wasn't sure how many minutes had passed while he entertained these thoughts, but suddenly he realized that it was silent. He looked back over at the girl next to him. She was watching him, a resigned expression on her face.

"I lost you again, didn't I?" she said.

He attempted an apologetic look, but his facial muscles failed him. "Sorry," he said in his trademark stoic expression.

She sighed. "It's okay. You know what? Let's take a break. I need to send a text to my roommate." She closed the book in her hand. "Here," She reached over with her other hand and grabbed the umbrella from him, "I'll take that for you."

There was a pause as she assessed her hands, which were now full.

"Wait…" She said with slow realization. "I need one of my hands to text." She held out the Bible. "Here, you take this."

Obediently he raised one hand out of the water to take it, but she stopped him.

"Hold on!" she cried. "You'll get the book wet. Here, wipe your hands on my shirt or something."

He withdrew his hand hastily. "What? Why?"

"Didn't you hear what I just said?" She gave him a funny look. "You'll get the book wet. We don't have a towel, so use my shirt. I don't mind."

"But it will look…strange."

"Haru." She fixed him with a serious look. "We are in the middle of a public water fountain. With an umbrella and a Bible. We have already gone far beyond 'strange.'"

He hesitated. Assessing her, he tried to figure out the least awkward spot to put his hand. Her arms would have been ideal, but her shirt was sleeveless. Finally, he reached out and dragged his hand across the side of her waist. Then, after a moment of thought, he reluctantly did the same thing with his other hand.

"There," she said, placing the Bible in his hands. "Didn't catch anything now, did you?"

He didn't respond, and instead began flipping aimlessly through the book. Beside him, he was aware of Christine pulling her phone out of her pocket and typing out a message. He turned his attention back to the pages before him. A certain verse caught his eye and he stopped to read it.

"What is this supposed to mean?" he asked.

"Hmm?" Christine finished sending her text and pocketed her phone, turning to him. "What?"

He read aloud, "_'Greet one another with a holy kiss.'_" He turned to her with a blank stare. "What is a 'holy kiss' supposed to be?"

"Ah…" She shifted the weight on her knees. "To be honest…I'm not exactly sure. But, you know, I have a feeling it's not the kind that goes on at frat parties."

His aloof gaze didn't change. "So this is a command that the Bible makes?"

"Well," she began slowly, "One of the more—um—eccentric commands, to be sure."

"People are expected to follow that?"

She gave a faint wince. "I'm going to be honest, this is one of the parts of the text that I'm not so solid on. You've got stuff in there that is very straightforward, where everyone can agree on the meaning of. Christ being crucified, for example. Loving each other, yadda yadda. And then you've got these—weird bits, that you don't really know what to do with."

Haruka listened attentively. His curiosity was somewhat piqued.

"So," she continued, "I'm not going to tell you that I know exactly what it means. But I can give you my best guess. The way I see it, a "holy kiss" is a representation of true love. The kind of love that Christ has for others; a love that is pure and selfless."

"You think it's just metaphorical then?" he asked.

"Well, not necessarily," she amended. "But I think that people sometimes avoid this one as a literal command because they don't want to violate other commands. As a literal action, I think a 'holy kiss' would have to be given purely out of love, not born out of lust or indulgence." She shrugged. "But don't quote me on that. I still haven't figured it out myself. I guess if the day ever comes that I start going around kissing everybody, then you'll know that I have."

The mental image of that horrified Haruka for some reason. He wasn't sure why.

"Hey! Christine!" a voice called.

They both turned to look. Christine's roommate, Rose, was standing to the side of the fountain. For some reason, there were two empty water pitchers in her hands. She held them up, grinning.

"You ordered a delivery?" she yelled over.

Christine turned to Haruka. "Give me a second," she told him, getting to her feet. "Here," She took the book from his hands. "I'll take that and put it where it's dry." She started wading over to the other girl.

Curious, he watched the two of them from where he lay in the water. Christine greeted her roommate as she closed the umbrella and placed it down on the fountain ledge, along with the book. Their voices drifted over to him.

"I know I told you to let me know if you needed anything," Rose was saying as she handed over the pitchers, "But why exactly did you ask me to bring these?"

"Haru seems to be more of a…visual learner," Christine murmured. "So I need some props. Thank you for bringing these all the way out here, by the way. I owe you one."

"Nah," responded Rose, then deliberately raised her voice in Haruka's direction, "After all, you know what the Bible says: True love is when a girl helps you out over and over again and expects nothing in return, even after two plus months of knowing each other. From Book of Something-Something, chapter X verse Y."

Christine glared. "_Thank you_, I'll see you at home."

Rose chuckled and departed, as Christine returned to Haruka's side.

"Don't quote her on that," she muttered to him. "It was...inaccurately cited, and _heavily_ paraphrased."

"I'll keep that in mind," he replied, then asked with interest, "Why are you carrying two water pitchers?"

"Break time's over," she answered. "Time to get back to our lesson."

"We're getting back to our lesson on the New Testament," he said slowly, "So you left behind the Bible, and came back with two water pitchers instead?"

She playfully kicked some water into his face. "Quit being snarky," she said, "And have a little faith." Making her way around him, she started wading towards the center of the fountain. "Come with me."

"Why?" He closed his eyes and reclined back into the water.

"We're going to the center of the fountain. Where there's more water."

He was on his feet and behind her instantly. She glanced over her shoulder at him, and jumped at his sudden proximity.

"Whoa, you move fast when you want to," she remarked, then muttered to herself, "I'll have to remember that trick."

They stopped at a spot where the water poured down in front of them.

"So," she began. "We were talking about the biblical concept of people being vessels." She held out the pitchers. "Imagine that these are people." Gesturing towards the cascading water, she continued, "And imagine that this is Living Water."

"Okay…" said Haruka slowly.

"So you got this fountain of Living Water right here, and these two pitchers over here," she went on, then stopped and grinned at him. "I bet you can get this one right. Tell me what's wrong with the pitchers."

"They don't have water in them," he answered immediately, and refrained from adding that it was a disgrace.

"Yup." She held one pitcher under the water so that it started to fill up. "The idea is that the Living Water pours itself into vessels that were once dry and empty, until they are full."

An odd mental image entered Haruka's head: It was of himself walking across a dry, arid desert filled with sandy dunes, his hand clutching at his throat in thirst as he struggled toward a sparkling oasis far in the distance…

Coming back to reality, he shook his head to clear it, wondering where on earth that thought had just come from.

"I understand perfectly," he said aloud.

"Well good," she said, giving him an odd look. "You were starting to go quivery-eyed on me again, so I thought for a second that I'd lost you there."

"No, I get it," he said. "The vessels _need_ the water."

She beamed in delight. It was that look again, the one that told him that she was quite pleased with him. He thought that it was rather well-earned on his part.

"You got it, Ariel," she said. "And, once the vessel is full," She tilted the now full pitcher and held the empty one under it to catch the water. "It can be poured out to others."

He watched as the continuous stream of water poured from the fountain to the first pitcher, to the second one, all in one unending flow.

Quietly, he repeated, "_'Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.'_"

She smiled softly at him. "Ta-da."

Stepping forward, he reached out to touch the falling water as she looked on.

"So is that your favorite verse now?" she teased.

He mulled this over. Uncertain of his answer, he instead asked her, "Do you have a favorite verse?"

Her lips twitched upwards. "Yes. Though not a very unique one."

He turned his gaze on her, wordlessly inviting her to share.

"It's from first Corinthians 13," she informed, then quoted, "_'Love is patient, love is kind. Love does not envy. Love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil. Love does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth. Love __bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.'_"

Haruka realized that he recognized these verses. Miss Amakata had quoted them once, long ago.

"I've heard that before," he said.

"Yes, it's a rather popular one," she admitted. "Anyway. This is your reward for staying focused for so long."

She raised one of the pitchers still in her hand, and emptied it over his head. A deluge of water poured over him. Surprised, he took a step back. Shaking the water out of his hair, he stared at her through wet lashes.

"What?" she said innocently. "Living water is good for you."

He blinked. "So it is," he agreed, stepping forward to take the other pitcher from her hand. Without warning, he poured it over her.

She leaped back with a shriek. "What the-!"

He met her shocked expression with an impassive gaze. "Just sharing it with you," he informed her very seriously. Then, the faintest hint of a smirk ghosted across his lips. "That's biblical, no?"

She gaped at him for a few moments, and then burst out laughing.

* * *

**A/N: ****Did you all catch that reference to the ****_Splash Free!_**** ending credits? =P**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: A quick thank you to the reader who left a guest review. I usually like to personally reply to everyone who reviews, but since you weren't signed in, this Author's Note is just for you!**

**Though while I'm here, a thank you as well to all who have read/reviewed/favorited/followed. You have all made me smile.**

**Onto the story!**

* * *

It was Monday, three days before the exam.

Christine was sitting at the edge of the campus pool, her legs in the water. The pool was empty except for Haruka, who was floating lazily on his back not too far from her, listening as she listed off key points to him. In her lap were her notes.

Ever since his progress nearly two weeks ago, she had gradually acquiesced to more and more study sessions near water until they eventually ended up by the pool. The only place she still refused to let him study at was the beach…she wouldn't put it past him to swim out into the ocean and never come back.

He still had his moments of occasionally zoning out, but he had improved immensely. Especially ever since she started using the new tactic that she had discovered a few days ago.

"Alright," she said. "Now list everything back to me that I just said."

He did so, perfectly. Then looked at her expectantly.

"Excellent." She smiled, and reached with a fork into the boxed lunch sitting beside her. "Here you go."

She held out a piece of mackerel to him.

Eagerly he swam to her side, stood, and ate the fish off of her fork. Christine was vaguely reminded of her childhood puppy that used to eat treats out of her hand. She wondered if she could get Haruka to play fetch.

His voice suddenly broke her out of her reverie. "You're a good cook, by the way," he monotoned.

"Oh, uh, thanks," she responded, somewhat flustered. He had said it without any intention of flattery, as was characteristic of him, but for some reason that seemed to make it even more meaningful. "I think your mackerel was better though."

He shrugged. "Yours is good too."

"Hah. Well, as long as it's enough incentive for you to pass the class, that's good enough for me."

There was a pause, before he quietly asked, "Do you think I'll pass?"

"Yes," she answered him honestly.

He cast his gaze downwards into the pool. Light reflected off the blue water and into the matching hue of his eyes, which were clouded with doubt.

Christine could understand his skepticism. She herself had agonized over the hopelessness of his attention span less than a month ago. Out of everything she had gone over with him in the past two months, he had probably absorbed only a third of it. But, he had also progressed exponentially in the last couple weeks. Yes, stuffing a semester's worth of information into such a condensed time frame made for bad odds. Yet she found herself filled with a sense of optimism anyway.

"Hey," she said, tilting her head down to catch his gaze. "You'll be fine. I have faith. So you should too." She gave a little smile. "It's biblical, no?"

He raised his head and considered her thoughtfully. When he continued to say nothing, she turned back to her notes.

"Okay," she began, "Let's get back to—"

"Wait," he said.

She stopped. "What is it?"

"I finished a draft of my final paper," he stated. "Will you read it?"

"Of course." She lowered her notes. "Do you have it with you?"

Without replying he pulled himself out of the water and went over to his bag by the side of the pool. Retrieving a document from it, he returned, handed it to her, and dove back into the water.

"Uh, okay, great," she said to his retreating form, which was now swimming away down the lane. "Let's just take a break then while I read this, oh and go ahead and have a few laps, you've earned it. Good, glad we came to that agreement together, thanks."

She sighed and turned her attention to the essay in her hands. But before she could start reading, Rose's voice interrupted her.

"Hey girl."

Christine looked up to see her roommate walking towards her. "Rose! What are you doing here?"

"On my way to class. Saw you by the pool and I have some time before class starts, so I thought I'd swing by. What are you doing here in the middle of the day?"

"I have a break right now," she said. "Haru and I both do."

Rose looked at the swimming figure in the pool and smirked. "Oh, so you're here with Mr. Merman. Figures. Why aren't you swimming with him?"

Christine gave her a stern look. "We're _studying_."

"Clearly."

She huffed. "Okay, _he's_ taking a break while I read over his essay. Which I was about to do, before you showed up."

"Uh-huh." Rose noticed the food on the ground. "What's this, you're starting lunch without me?"

"No, it's mackerel for Haru every time he gets an answer right."

Rose managed to keep a straight face. "What."

"It's like I'm at SeaWorld!" Christine gave a gleeful grin, twirling the fork in her hands.

Rose considered her for a moment. "I thought you said he wasn't Shamu?"

"He's not." Christine raised an eyebrow at Rose. "Shamu's a _whale._ They eat baby seals_._"

There was a beat. Then a light bulb seemed to go off over Rose's head.

"Ohhhh," she exclaimed, "I get it! He's like a dolphin!"

"Congrats, you're now one step closer to being a marine biologist," said Christine dryly.

"And _you're_ one step closer to being the perfect wife," Rose shot back with a grin. "Cooking for him now, are you?"

Christine flushed. "So what? I've cooked for you before, too."

"Uh-huh, and I would be jealous, if your pure heart hadn't rubbed off on me so," Rose mocked lightly. "Now I'm just happy to see that a boy's finally caught your heart."

Christine sighed in irritation. "You're ever the romantic, Rose."

"No, actually," corrected Rose, kneeling down to be eye level with her, "I'm the one being practical here and thinking ahead. The exam is in three days. And then it's summer break. What happens to the two of you once you help him pass? Have you thought about that?"

Christine had not. She didn't say anything.

Rose softened. "When are you going to tell him how you feel, Christine?"

She scoffed and turned back to the paper in her hands. "He knows how I feel," she said, waving Rose away nonchalantly, "I value him as a friend and I enjoy our time together. He already knows all that."

Rose didn't back down. "Look," she said, "I get that you would help out anyone. I've seen the way you help out other people all the time, so I know that you helping him doesn't make this into a special case. I get that, because I know you. And because I know you, I can tell that there's something different about the way you look at dolphin boy, than with anyone else you've helped before."

Christine stared at her friend, somewhat stunned by her speech.

Finally, she managed, "Are you suggesting that I'm displaying favoritism?" and gave a halfhearted smile. "That's hardly fair."

Rose laughed at her. "No, my dear idiot friend," she said with a glint in her eye. "I'm suggesting that you're displaying _love_." She straightened up to go. "My time's up. See you later!"

Christine stared after her departing friend. _Love?_ She loved all of her friends—so, sure, _theoretically_ she loved the guy. But she knew that Rose was talking about something…extra.

Frowning, she turned her attention to Haruka's essay. She didn't have time to be distracted right now. Flipping past the title page, she began to read.

_"Ask and you shall receive," Jesus had said. An often recognized theme of the New Testament is the importance of crying out to Christ for help, before salvation is delivered. However, what is often overlooked is the situation which drives a person to that point. For Peter, one such situation was sinking._

Interesting, she thought. She remembered the day that they had discussed this…it was perhaps the first moment in which he had started paying attention, though she was surprised that he remembered this point. He had seemed far more preoccupied and offended with the fact that Jesus hadn't been swimming. Speaking of which, she was surprised that the word "water" hadn't cropped up in the essay yet. But surely it would soon. She skimmed forward through the next few paragraphs until she found it.

_ Sometimes, a person gets caught up in swimming through the metaphorical waters of life, but never stops to notice all the light that is in those waters. It isn't until he starts to sink that his life changes so that he can begin to see it. And it isn't until someone jumps in and saves him, that he realizes just how thankful he is for the help of another. _

Her heart suddenly hitched. A vague memory floated into her mind…the memory of how she and Haruka had first met. She remembered, in the months following that encounter, asking him what exactly he had been doing at the bottom of the pool that day. His response was that he had been "learning how to sink." She always found it kind of funny that this was what had brought them together. Was it just coincidence that his essay was starting to echo their first meeting? It must be. Rose's frivolous words from earlier were just making her read too much into things. Rubbing her eyes tiredly, she continued reading.

After a couple of pages, she found herself smiling with a sense of pride. Haruka truly had retained a lot of what they had discussed. The essay had an abundance of perfectly analyzed quotes from the text. She paused at another paragraph that caught her attention.

_ When Jesus saved Peter by pulling him out of the water, it painted a picture for how Christ's followers are to treat everyone. The emphasis is placed on the merits of being saved. However, one would never receive the opportunity to be saved unless he started to sink first._

There it was again…the allusion to sinking. Once again, thoughts of her own interactions with Haruka came to mind. She looked up from the paper to the young man in the water who was still swimming. Was there a reason he had insisted on her reading his essay…and then jetted off like that while she did? Her eyes wandered to the final paragraph.

_In conclusion, while it is true that the New Testament presents being saved as the best thing that can happen to a person, the following is also true: One of the best things that can happen to a person is learning how to sink. _

Christine stared at the last few words. Slowly, she looked up to fix her gaze, once again, on her friend in the water. Her friend Haruka Nanase. The emotionally challenged aquaphile. Rose had once asked her if he had ever said "thank you" to her. He never had, and she never expected him to. And the truth was that it had never bothered her. She knew that he was a man of few words. But now this…was this his way of thanking her?

An unexpected wave of tenderness suddenly swept through her.

"Haru," she said softly, before quickly realizing that he wouldn't be able to hear her. She raised her voice. "Hey, Haru."

He continued swimming his lap.

She carefully placed his essay down on the deck and, before she could change her mind, lowered herself into the water—clothes and all. Wading out towards the center of the pool, she positioned herself in Haruka's way. As he neared her, he stopped short, surfacing out of the water in confusion. He stared at her.

"What are you doing?" he asked warily.

"Getting your attention," she answered. "It was either this or throwing something at you."

"You could've just waited until I got to the wall," he said slowly.

She smiled. "Well, I was feeling nostalgic."

She wondered if he was feeling the same sense of déjà vu that she was feeling right now. They stared at each other in silence for a few beats.

"I read your essay," she finally said. "I thought it was really good."

He offered her no response. Racking her brain, she babbled on, "I actually can't think of any changes for you to make. Well, maybe except for the wording about someone jumping into the water to save someone else, since it's supposed to be a parallel to Jesus and technically he didn't _jump_ into the water, he just reached down and pulled Peter up…"

She trailed off. There was another awkward silence.

"But other than that, it was very well-written," she finished. "And I think you will get a good grade. Good job, Haru. I'm proud of you."

She lowered herself into the water then, into a floating position on her back. He gave her a strange look.

"Now what are you doing?" he asked.

"Taking a break," she replied. "Don't I get one too?"

He cast her one last suspicious gaze before he, too, lowered himself into the water to join her. They floated beside each other, looking up at the sky.

As Christine stared at the clouds, she found herself mulling over the question Rose had posed earlier: _What happens to the two of you once you help him pass? _She cleared her throat.

"So," she began slowly. "What are your plans for when the semester ends?"

"I have a summer internship near campus," he replied.

She turned her head slightly to the side to watch him. "Let me guess…it's near the ocean? A marine biology program?"

"Yes."

A fond smile played across her lips. Why was she not surprised? Haruka turned his head to the side then so that his eyes met hers, catching her off guard.

"What are your plans?" he asked her.

She paused before answering. The truth was that she had not decided for sure yet. She had been considering enrolling in a summer course, but had held off on registering until she was certain. Part of her had just wanted to relax this summer instead. But now…

_When are you going to tell him how you feel, Christine?_ Rose's words continued to echo through her head. Looking into the eyes of the boy in front of her, she suddenly came to a decision.

"I'm going to stay for the summer semester," she said, then added casually, "So that I can be near you."

His eyes widened in alarm. "What? Why?"

She turned her head to look back up at the sky. "Because," she heard herself state very matter-of-factly, "I love you."

There was the sound of spluttering beside her head. She straightened up to look. Haruka had righted himself so that his head was now out of the water. His eyes, which were currently as wide as saucers, were fixed on her.

"What?" he stated dumbly.

"You look like you're about to drown," she observed.

He continued to stare at her, mouth opening and closing like a fish as he struggled to form a response. She waited for herself to feel a stab of disappointment, but instead found it overwhelmed by a feeling pity for her friend. She had never seen the poor guy display this much emotion before. It was probably blowing a fuse in his brain.

"Don't worry, Haru," she said gently. "I don't expect anything in return. Really. I just wanted to be honest with you, since you always are with me. So don't strain yourself so."

He shut his mouth, which had been open wordlessly for the last few seconds. She gave him a warm smile.

"This may be cliché," she told him. "But I'm just happy to have your company. I love you first and foremost as my friend. Everything on top of that is just…extra."

Having finished her little speech, she reclined back into a floating position in the water. Haruka stood beside her for a few moments longer in tense silence. Finally, slowly, he leaned back into the water to float beside her once more. They said nothing to each other.

Christine noted, with no small amount of satisfaction, that they had come a long way from the days when he used to constantly swim away from her if there was water around. She smiled to herself.

She had always been one to look at the silver linings.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: This is the penultimate chapter. Thank you so much to all you lovely readers for sticking with the story thus far!**

* * *

The next day, Haruka decided to skip his morning class.

He knew that this was likely a mistake because it was a crucial exam review day. However, he was feeling an increasing level of awkwardness and emotional turmoil at the notion of having to face Christine in class. It was an unusual and unpleasant feeling for him. He was fairly certain that, had he showed up, he wouldn't have been able to pay any attention anyway.

And so this morning after practice, he gave into the temptation to just avoid it altogether and stay in the water. What he needed was to unwind and get into the zone before the exam. He didn't need this added stress and distraction. Water would soothe and calm him, and help him to concentrate. Water wouldn't make him feel awkward and uncomfortable, the way women did.

He tried to ignore the fact that other women never fazed him.

He attended the rest of his classes that day as usual. By 4:45, he was back at the pool, early for practice. This was nothing new. He liked having some time in the water to be alone and free, before the strict regiments of a practice session began.

He was floating on his back when John showed up.

"Hey man," John greeted him. "I ran into your friend Christine earlier. She was looking for you. Said you weren't in class this morning."

Haruka said nothing. John continued.

"I didn't know where you were, so I told her to just find you at practice later today. She'll probably show up, just so you know."

Haruka started. He stood up in the water and stared at John. "You told her what?"

John gave him an odd look. "What? It's not like she wouldn't have just come here anyway. I've seen her meet up with you after practice before. What's the big deal?"

Haruka didn't reply. Other swimmers were starting to filter into the pool, and the coach had arrived. Before John could question him further, a whistle blew.

"Alright, everyone in the water!" yelled the coach. "Practice is starting!"

Haruka put his goggles back on as John jumped into the water beside him.

"By the way," said John upon resurfacing, "My sister is here with some of her friends to watch us practice." He pointed over at the sidelines, where a group of girls were sitting. "You remember her, don't you?"

Haruka didn't.

"Jeanette?" John prompted. "She's a freshman here? Kinda has a thing for you. Ring any bells?"

"Not really."

"Oh well." John shrugged. "She just kept pestering me so I finally promised I'd bring her up to you. No big deal though. I didn't really think she'd be your type anyway."

Haruka made no comment, and instead pushed off of the wall to begin his lap. He definitely didn't need another woman on his mind.

He had had girlfriends before. Sort of. Perhaps the term 'girlfriend' was a somewhat loose one.

Kou Matsuoka had been an almost-girlfriend. Well, she was a girl, and she was a friend. What with her constantly hanging around him and the other boys of the Iwatobi Swim Club, it seemed inevitable that she would end up with one of them eventually. She herself had seemed unable to choose, and on what seemed like a whim she asked Haruka out on a date one day. He was pretty sure it was only because he was the sole member of the club that called her "Kou" instead of "Gou." And maybe something would have developed between them, had Rin not forcefully stepped in and put his foot down.

Jane Harper had technically been a girlfriend. They met freshman year when she came to watch one of the swim meets, and she had developed an instant fascination with him. She started hanging around his classes, finding him during breaks, striking up conversations with him during lunch. One day, she introduced him to her friends as her boyfriend. He hadn't corrected her—partly out of curiosity over what it would be like to be someone's boyfriend, and partly because he didn't feel like talking more than necessary. The relationship had lasted little over a month. The last thing she had said to him was, "If you love the water so much more than me, why don't you marry it then!" He had responded that he wasn't sure the marriage courthouse would allow it, and she had stormed out.

Since then, there had been plenty of girls that would frequent swim meets and ogle the men of the team, including him. The same thing happened to the women's swim team as well. One could hardly be surprised, since cheering on the swim team was a perfect excuse to watch a team of young and fit college students in the water wearing nothing but swimsuits.

Haruka was not keen on having a repeat experience of a girlfriend who fell in love with his muscles and then proceeded to turn the pool into a rival for his interests.

His attention drifting back to the present, he performed a perfect flip turn and sprinted back to the wall. Resurfacing to catch his breath, he heard giggles drifting over from the sidelines. Glancing over, he saw John's sister, Jeanette, point in his direction while engaging in hushed whispers with her friends. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes.

As he started another lap, he reflected on the likelihood of Jeanette's infatuation dwindling should they actually have gotten to know each other. Girls usually became exasperated with his stoic silence, taking it as a personal insult even though it was what drew them in at first. And though they would initially gush over his swimming talent, they soon came to resent it.

For the little amount of socializing that he did, Haruka was fairly perceptive of human nature. He had always been an observant boy, and after twenty years of quietly observing others it had become apparent to him that people, both male and female, liked receiving attention. Haruka was not one to dole out vast amounts of attention to anyone beyond silent and apathetic observation.

Most people took this personally and were offended. There had only been a few people in his life who were exceptions. His family. His best friends from high school. John. And Christine.

He thought of Christine now, as his hands sliced through the water.

He thought of how she had willingly put up with him for months, forgiving him each time he abandoned her tutelage in favor of a body of water. He thought of every moment that he had spaced out on her and how, rather than get frustrated with him, she had patiently repeated herself again and again until he got it. He was suddenly reminded of her favorite verse that she had shared with him weeks ago.

_Love is patient, love is kind._

Most people would have given up on him long ago, in anger and vexation. Yet she had never once lost her temper with him. Most people would have at least accused him of ingratitude by the end of all this. She, instead, went so far as to call him her friend.

_Love is not provoked, thinks no evil._

Practice went by in a blur as he contemplated all these thoughts. As he was climbing out of the pool two hours later, he found himself face to face with Jeanette.

"Hey, you," she simpered. "Remember me?"

She was a head shorter than him, he observed. In fact, she was the same height as Christine. Which put her eye line directly level with his chest and biceps. She admired them openly now, not bothering to tilt her head back the one inch it took to make eye contact with him.

He opened his mouth to refute her, but before he could a voice interrupted him.

"Haru!" Christine called, jogging over. "Hey." She stopped in front of them and looked up at him. It suddenly occurred to him that she always looked him in the eye. Her words from a past study session drifted back to him.

_The way I see it, a "holy kiss" is a representation of true love…not born out of lust or indulgence._

Christine wasn't the first girl who had said "I love you" to him. Jane had said it before, as a last resort for his attention. She would say it whenever he was on the brink of foregoing a date with her in order to swim. She would say it whenever she noticed other girls eyeing him, and pointedly place her hands on his biceps in an act of possessiveness as she whispered those three words to him. He had often wondered if, during those moments, she was actually addressing his arms instead of him.

Although Haruka may not have had the emotional aptitude to determine just how he felt about Christine's confession yet, there was one thing about it that was now very clear to him. Unlike other girls, it was not his muscles that she loved. It was him.

Her voice brought him back to the present. "You missed the exam review in class today," she said.

He braced himself for a scolding. Instead, she handed him a set of papers.

"So I took notes for you," she finished.

Haruka stared dumbly at the notes in his hand, then up at her. His brain floundered for the proper reaction.

Jeanette looked displeased. "Don't tell me this is your girlfriend," she said to him.

He was still at a loss for words. Somewhere in the back of his mind, there was an unfamiliar urge to defend his friend in some way from the implied insult. But he had no idea what to say.

Christine's response took both of them by surprise. "Oh no," she said, smiling warmly at the other girl. "He and I are just friends."

_Love does not parade itself, is not puffed up._

"You're John's sister, aren't you?" she asked next. "Jeanette? You're in my Monday morning class."

Jeanette scrutinized her, before recognition dawned on her face. "Oh yeah! You sit behind me with the other freshmen."

Haruka was still staring at Christine, trying to formulate some sort of verbal response. The one that finally bubbled forth was sorely lacking.

"You're a freshman?" he blurted stupidly.

"Yes." Christine raised an eyebrow at him. "You didn't know?"

He said nothing. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed John, who had witnessed the whole thing from a few feet away, doubling over in quiet laughter.

Christine turned back to Jeanette, who had been regarding the two of them confusedly.

"I didn't see you on Monday," Christine said to her, frowning. "You missed the review too! Do you need notes?"

"Oh!" Jeanette looked taken aback, then abashed. "Yeah I overslept…terrible timing! I've been looking everywhere for someone's notes. You're a godsend, thank you!"

"It's no problem." Christine crossed over to stand beside Jeanette. "My notes are at my dorm. If you want to come with me I can grab them and make you a copy."

"Okay!" Jeanette agreed cheerily, her mood towards the other girl now completely reversed. She turned to follow Christine.

As the two women started to leave, Christine looked back at Haruka, flashing him a tender smile.

"I'll see you later, Haru," she said. "Bye!"

He watched them go, dumbfounded. He had just watched his friend turn a potential catfight into yet another friendship, in the space of two minutes. Apparently, neither his attachment to swimming nor the attentions of other girls seemed to faze her.

_Love does not envy._

"Wait—" He found his voice. "Christine."

She turned.

"I…these notes…" he stuttered. How hard could it be to say thank you? He struggled with himself. "Tha—I mean…" He gave up. "I'll look over what you gave me. See you at the exam on Thursday."

She smiled. "Yes. You'll do great." With that, she left.

John came to his side. "You just tried to say thank you, didn't you."

Haruka frowned. "How did you know?"

"Because it looked like you almost pulled a muscle."

He scowled and looked away.

"Man," John shook his head. "I can't believe you were friends with her for this long and never even asked her what year she was in." He chuckled. "Lucky for you, she's not friends with you for your conversation. Not that anyone is…"

Haruka just glowered at him silently (thereby proving the other boy's point.)

John grabbed his bag to go. "A tip for how to deal with the ladies," he said as he turned to leave. "Actions speak louder than words."

Haruka watched his teammate go. Part of him wanted to retort that he knew that, and that he had already written a whole essay to thank her. Though, technically, that also counted as words rather than actions. Five pages worth of words that never once actually, literally, said "Thank you Christine." And, technically, he had to write that essay for class anyway. Now that he thought about it, he had to admit that it was a fairly weak show of gratitude.

He considered the notes in his hand, and again wondered to himself if he would be able to pass the exam on Thursday. By now he knew about two thirds of the class material. Would that be enough? Christine seemed to think so. It occurred to him that she showed a lot more faith in his ability to pass than he did. Even after all the times her words went in one ear and out the other, she seemed to grow only more optimistic as she patiently continued to help him.

_Love __bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things._

He suddenly realized that no one was a better example than Christine when it came to applying the saying, "Actions speak louder than words." She had always shrugged and said that she was just "acting biblically." But now he knew that all her actions had been filled with love. She had been showing through her actions that she loved him, long before she had ever said the words aloud. Perhaps even before she had become consciously aware of it herself.

And, to his astonishment, he suddenly realized that he wanted to be able to act the same way in return.


	9. Chapter 9

Haruka noted to himself that Miss Amakata would be proud if she could see him now. Never before had his brain so quickly churned forth quotes in response to life situations.

At the moment, the quote that came to mind was in response to his broken Xbox laying on the floor in front of him.

_"__Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?" Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven."_

"I'm so sorry!" his roommate was moaning. "It was an accident! I'll pay you for it, please don't kill me."

Haruka wondered why his roommate felt so intimidated, and then he realized that he was currently glaring daggers at the other boy. With intense effort, he schooled his expression into a more neutral one.

"It's okay," he forced himself to say, then muttered very stiffly, "I…forgive you."

His roommate looked amazed. "Wh—what?"

He cleared his throat. "I said," he voiced more loudly, "Don't worry about it. I haven't used it for months. I was probably going to get rid of it anyway."

It was true, now that he thought about it. The thing was old and had just been sitting around. His initial impulse to drown his roommate in the bathtub had been fueled mostly by the testosterone-driven instinct to attack any homo sapien that messed with his stuff.

Judging by the relieved look on the other boy's face, he was aware of how close he had been to death.

"Thanks, man," he said to Haruka.

Haruka went back to studying without making a reply. He figured that he had already spoken more words to his roommate in this one moment than he had all semester. There was no need to go overboard. And besides, he needed to focus on tomorrow's exam.

Gazing over Christine's notes, he wondered to himself at what exact point it was, in the last twenty four hours, that he had decided to give this whole "acting biblical" thing a go. The last logical conclusion that his mind had made was that it was clearly something that Christine valued. And that John's suggestion to speak through actions rather than words was a good one. Because Haruka Nanase, emotionally inept as he was, could not quite bring himself to express his feelings in any other way.

He told himself that this was just his way of showing gratitude. Of demonstrating that she had made a positive and lasting impression on him. He told himself that this was just his way of showing that he did in fact value her as a friend, despite all of his behavior that suggested otherwise.

Yes. This was only to prove that he wasn't a complete jerk who didn't even know what year his friend was in.

He continued to tell himself this for the rest of the evening as he studied, each time unbidden thoughts of Christine drifted into his mind.

* * *

On his way to the exam the next morning, Haruka's brain generated yet another quote.

He was already running a few minutes behind. In his haste, he bumped into another student, knocking her over. Books went flying.

"Sorry," he said automatically, bending down to pick up the fallen books as the girl struggled back to her feet. She had been carrying a lot of books. As Haruka gathered the last of them and straightened up to hand them back, he got a good look at her for the first time.

The girl had one leg in a cast and was leaning on a crutch.

"No worries, it was just an accident," she replied, reaching out for her books.

Haruka assessed the precariously high pile of books. A sudden impulse hit him.

"Where are you going?" he asked bluntly.

The other student pulled her hand back. "What?" she asked, looking weirded out.

Haruka mentally cursed at himself. He was terribly awkward at this whole helping others thing.

"These are pretty heavy," he tried again. "Do you want help carrying them to wherever you're going?"

"Oh." The girl's expression softened in understanding. "That would be great, thanks…I need to go to the other side of campus though. Is that okay?"

Haruka hesitated as he remembered the time and where he needed to be. The first thing that Christine had ever quoted to him floated into his head.

_Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others._

"That's fine," he heard himself say.

* * *

He arrived at the exam twenty minutes late.

Christine looked up as he entered the room, and an expression of relief colored her features. She gave him an encouraging smile as he grabbed a test and made his way to his seat.

Sitting down, he noticed that the exam booklet was thicker than he had anticipated. Anxiety suddenly hit him as he wondered if he would be able to finish the exam in time…and if he would even be able to remember everything that he had learned.

It was much like the sinking feeling that he had felt after getting his failed midterm back. What would happen if, after all this time and effort, his exam grade still wasn't enough to keep him on the team? Mind swimming with doubt, he instinctively glanced up at Christine for help.

The girl didn't notice him looking at her, absorbed as she was by her test. Haruka observed that there was a sense of calm confidence about her as she steadily scribbled down answers. He wondered what she would say to him right now. Probably a Jesus quote.

_O you of little faith, why did you doubt?_

His lips twitched ever so slightly. That was almost certainly what she would say to him, with not a small hint of snark and an encouraging smile. Any outside observer would not have noticed his expression change. But the fact was that he (as his old friend Nagisa had once described) was "smiling on the inside" at this thought.

Without further hesitation, he began his exam.

* * *

The class period had been over for three minutes.

Haruka and one other boy were still in their seats, finishing up the exam. All the other students had already left, including Christine. Haruka was surprised that the professor was showing such lenience at the moment.

"Alright guys," the professor said. "Two more minutes, and then I need you to hand those in."

The other student jotted down one last answer and stood up to turn in his test. As he left the room, Haruka hurriedly scribbled down a final sentence before setting down his pen with a relieved exhale.

"Cutting it close, Mr. Nanase," remarked the professor when he handed the exam over to her. He looked downwards, remembering a verse that he had just quoted on his exam.

_Give thanks in all circumstances. _

"Thank you for allowing me to finish the test," he muttered. "And for your…lenience with me, this semester."

"It was hardly lenience, just a warning to commit to your studies," she replied with an arched eyebrow. "Though I'm glad to see that it didn't fall on deaf ears. I suppose it wouldn't hurt to inform you that you needn't worry any longer about losing your spot on the swim team."

Haruka looked up, surprised. His test hadn't even been graded yet.

"Your paper happened to be the first one that I started reading while the exam was still in progress," she continued. "Let's just say that the grade you'll be receiving for it will more than ensure that you pass. And if your exam reflects the same familiarity with the text as your essay did, then I'd say that you have nothing to worry about at all."

"I—thank you," he said again.

He left the classroom amazed. Mostly by the fact that he had just said the words "thank you" twice.

Wandering through the hall, he looked to see if Christine was around. She had finished her test early and left about twenty minutes ago, and she was nowhere to be seen now. He set off in search for her, hoping that she hadn't already headed back to her dorm to pack up for summer break. Although she had said that she would stay for the summer semester, he wasn't so sure that she would still follow through with that after the less than encouraging response he had given her.

He still felt committed to this whole showing his gratitude through actions rather than words thing. The last forty hours had involved exerting a lot more labor than was typical or comfortable for him, all in order to put that into practice. If, after all that effort, she ended up leaving for the summer without getting to witness it firsthand for herself, then he might very well go and drown his roommate in the bathtub after all.

He exited the building and squinted into the sunlight. Ahead, Christine was seated at a bench, reading. She looked up as she heard him approach. A dazzling smile broke out across her face when she saw that it was him.

He took in the way that she smiled at him. The smile that he had come to know was just for him. In that moment, Haruka Nanase—tsundere extraordinaire—suddenly knew exactly what his feelings were, just as another verse came to mind.

_Greet one another with a holy kiss._

"Haru!" she greeted him eagerly. "How did you do on—"

She was cut off as he swooped in and stopped her lips with his own.

After a moment he stepped back. Christine's eyes were wide.

"Haru?" she asked softly. "What was that?"

"A holy kiss."

She looked at him blankly. "What?"

He cleared his throat, suddenly nervous. "It was a holy kiss. You said that a holy kiss is a representation of true love. Thus, I found it appropriate to greet you with one as scripture commands. Since that's—how I feel."

Christine looked stunned. Unnerved, he restrained the urge to run away. She was probably thinking that that was the vaguest love confession she had ever heard. _Swim back to Japan,_ he berated himself. _You're no good at this._

His anxiety was assuaged though when, slowly, a small smile crept onto Christine's lips. She reached out and grabbed his hand with her own.

"Are you sure you don't have me confused for the ocean?" she asked lightly.

"Quite sure." He tightened his fingers around hers. "But I hope you don't mind that our first date will be at the beach."

Christine wrapped her arms around him, threw her head back, and laughed and laughed. The sound was filled with such joy that it brought a faint smile to Haruka's own lips. As he instinctively brought his hands up to meet her waist, memories of a time when he was hesitant to do so now seemed perfectly absurd. Looking down fondly at the laughing woman in his arms, he thought of one final, fitting verse.

_Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say…Rejoice._

_**Fin.**_

* * *

**A/N: Thank you so much, dear readers, for making it all the way to the end of this story. I am aware that this a rather unusual story, particularly in the realm of anime fanfiction, and that is why I am all the more grateful to all of you for taking the time to give it a chance.**

**I know I said that this would be the final chapter, and this _is_ the conclusion of their story, but...there is the possibility of an epilogue. On the one hand, I feel like this is the perfect point for the curtain to fall. But on the other hand, part of me always wants to see what happens behind the curtain that closes over a 'happily-ever-after.' I long for an encore, of sorts. And if you guys feel the same way, I may very well oblige. So, what do you think...leave the happy ending un-meddled with, or find out what happens after 'happily-ever-after'?**

**...Good gracious, I sound like a bad Disney sequel.**


	10. Epilogue Bonus Chapter

**A/N: Well, you guys asked, so you received! Though I'm very sorry for the long wait. This turned into less of an epilogue and more of a sequel oneshot, as it is much, much longer than all the previous chapters. It was also much tougher to write. I think you'll soon see why. If I took more time I would have liked to trim it down and make it more polished and better structured...but ultimately I decided that I had spent too much time on it already, it was just fanfiction, and I'd already made you guys wait too long. In any case, thank you so much for your patience, for the kind reviews, and for showing this story such love. After all, love is patient and love is kind. =)**

* * *

_A few months later…_

It was a quiet Saturday in the middle of summer break.

Christine sat in Haruka's room at his desk, alone, idly towel drying her hair—when the soft sounds of a Skype ringtone broke the silence. Startled, she looked at the name that was popping up on the laptop screen: _Hazuki-kun._

"Haru," she called in the direction of the bathroom. No response came, as the Skype call continued to ring. "Haru!" she raised her voice. "Someone's calling you on Skype!"

Still no response. The ringtone abruptly ended. Sighing, Christine stood up and made her way to the door of the bathroom.

"Hey," she said, giving the closed door a brisk knock. "Did you hear me? You missed a Skype call."

The sound of faint splashes came from beyond the door. She suspected that her boyfriend had just resurfaced from inside the bathtub.

"I heard it," came his muffled voice from inside. "Who was it?"

She never ceased to be amazed by how the young man still managed to hear everything from underwater. Maybe he really _was_ a dolphin.

"Hazuki something," she replied, hoping she wasn't butchering the name too horribly.

"Answer it," he said simply.

"It's already over, Haru," she told him, exasperated. "You missed it."

"He'll call again."

"How do you know?" she questioned.

"Nagisa always does."

Christine racked her brain for a moment until the name clicked. "_Oh._ Nagisa. The one who called you four times in a row on your birthday until you finally picked up?"

"The very same."

She laughed. "You want me to take your phone calls for you already? Moving a bit fast, don't you think?"

No response came from behind the door. The sound of the Skype ringtone started up again from the next room.

"I'm not going to answer it, Haru," she told him, leaning against the door and crossing her arms. "You said before that all the guys from your old team usually get together for these Skype calls, don't they? I don't even know Japanese."

"They know English," he informed her.

"I don't know _them_," she protested.

"They know you."

"I don't—wait, what?" She stopped short. "You…told them about me?"

"Yes," he answered shortly.

She fought hard to mask how pleased she was by this. "Still though," she said, trying to keep the smile out of her voice, "They're calling for you, not me."

"Yes," he agreed, "But they also want to meet you."

Her smile grew. "So get out of the tub and introduce me to them."

"In a minute."

"That's what you said half an hour ago."

"I wasn't done half an hour ago."

"Just get out of the bathtub already!" she exclaimed. How was it that her boyfriend took longer to bathe than she did? It had only taken her fifteen minutes in the shower, earlier, to wash the lake scum out of her hair. And she had a lot more hair than he did.

As to why there had been lake scum in her hair in the first place…

* * *

_Three hours earlier:_

_Haruka and Christine looked, for all the world, like any other young couple in the park. They were lounging in the grass together, a picnic blanket spread under them. Between them lay the remnants of a shared lunch. A dozen meters away, other park goers sat lazily beside their fishing poles, which were cast into the large lake in front of them._

_Haruka was currently eyeing the lake with much interest, as well as a small amount of apprehension. His girlfriend suddenly spoke up from beside him._

_ "__You're thinking that that water is sorely lacking the benefits of chlorine," Christine guessed. "And wondering what the likelihood of growing a third arm will be if you jump in."_

_Haruka was impressed. She was the second person, after Makoto, to be able to voice his exact thoughts. And the first female._

_But, as usual, he didn't verbalize this thought._

_Christine looked apologetic. "I didn't think it would be this murky. If I had known, I would've chosen another spot for lunch."_

_Haruka wasn't oblivious to how she always catered to him in the date locations that she chose. After they had exhausted practically every area of the beach during their first month of dating, she started suggesting a variety of local water parks to visit. After that, she found a local hiking trail that featured a waterfall. And a few weeks ago, for his birthday, she had treated him to dinner at a poolside restaurant. _

_In terms of potential life partners, Haruka felt like he had hit the jackpot. _

_He reached out and fingered a strand of her hair. "It's okay," he told her. "Someone I know once taught me something called forgiveness."_

_She smirked at that. "Who, Jesus?" _

_He gave a light snort as he continued to twirl her hair through his fingers. She smiled genuinely at him then as an idea suddenly lit up her eyes. Reaching up, she caught his hand with her own._

_ "__Hey," she said excitedly, "Let's rent a rowboat from the dock. That way you can be in the water without, you know, being in the water."_

_Haruka didn't know how he'd gotten so lucky as to be dating a genius._

_As the two stood and started making their way to the dock, neither they nor the bystanders of the lake were expecting what happened next._

* * *

Skype rang again for a third time, bringing Christine's thoughts back to the present. The sound of a muffled splash from inside the bathroom told her that Haruka had gone underwater again. She sighed and leaned her head against the door.

"Has it occurred to you," she asked softly, not totally expecting him to hear her, "That I might feel nervous, and want to have you there with me?"

Another splash. "Yes," came Haruka's voice, making her jump. How did he _do _that? "But," he continued, "I have faith in you."

She stood there, torn between feeling deeply touched or somewhat annoyed. "But—" she began.

"O you of little faith," he cut her off, a faint smirk evident in his voice, "Why did you doubt?" His tone softened. "They will love you. As much as I do. Well, hopefully not _that_ much."

She laughed a little. It was rare that Haruka ever said the three words, "I love you," together in order; instead he frequently took a roundabout route to express the same sentiment. Christine found it awfully romantic.

In the next room, the Skype call continued to ring.

"Go on," he prompted her. "Answer it."

"Alright, fine," she relented, turning away. "But hurry up."

Rushing back to the laptop before the ringing could stop, she hurriedly clicked the 'answer call' button. In her haste she didn't notice that the caller ID had changed to read: _Group Call. _

Two black boxes popped up onscreen, as the video feed attempted to transmit an image from halfway across the world.

She peered into the webcam. "Hi. I mean—uh, erm—_moshi moshi_…?"

The face of a youthful looking blond boy appeared onscreen in one of the boxes. In the other box, a red-haired young man wearing a bored expression gazed at her. He raised an eyebrow at her greeting, while the blonde's eyes widened.

"Ohhh!" exclaimed the blonde excitedly, before spewing a string of words in a language that Christine didn't understand. All she managed to catch was _'Haru-chan_' and what sounded like a horrendous Engrish interpretation of the word 'girlfriend.'

"_Neh neh, Rei-chan, Mako-chan,_" the blonde called over his shoulder, before continuing on in a slew of Japanese as he pointed to her on his screen, gesturing excitedly as he spoke. Two other young men appeared beside him, looking at her with curiosity. Meanwhile, the redhead in the other call watched disinterestedly, his chin in one hand.

"W-wait a second," she stuttered, holding up her hands as if to defend herself. "I'm sorry—I mean, _gomen_, but…"

"Nagisa, you nitwit," said the redhead in perfect English. "She doesn't speak Japanese."

The blonde, Nagisa, shut up for a moment, surprised. A kind-looking brunette boy gently shouldered him out of the way so that he could address her.

"Please forgive him," he said in lightly accented English, smiling all the while. "He just got overexcited. You must be Christine?"

"Yes. Hello." She gave a little wave. "Haru asked me to take this call for him. He's currently in the bathtub but should be out soon."

"_Baka,_" the red-haired man muttered under his breath. "Some things never change."

"Haru-chan is always Haru-chan," the brunette laughed.

A bespectacled boy in the back spoke up, looking puzzled. "But what is he doing in there at this hour? Isn't it almost dinner time over there?"

"Yes, well," Christine pondered over how to tell the story. "We were at the lake, you see…"

* * *

_Christine sat in one end of the boat with her legs crossed, amusedly observing her boyfriend's struggle over the oars._

_ "__Not sure how to paddle through the water when it's not with your own arms, are you?" she noted lightly._

_Haruka gritted his teeth as he rowed. He had assumed that anything in the water would be easy for him. He had been wrong._

_ "__I'm just teasing," she assured him with a smile. "This is fine. At least we're moving, which is more than I could boast if I were at the oars."_

_Haruka silently thanked God for giving him such an easygoing girlfriend. No doubt someone like Jane Harper would have made a snarky comment about how—_

_"__It's too bad we can't just use your freestyle kick to power the boat like a motor," she added with a big grin, unable to help herself._

_Okay. So maybe his girlfriend wasn't above making the occasional snarky comment._

_She laughed at the glare that he sent her way. Rising up, she carefully made her way to his side and sat down next to him._

_"__Sorry, it was begging to be said," she chuckled, before placing a hand on his arm. "Take a break. We're out far enough." _

_With some relief, he put down the oars. The boat drifted to a stop, only a dozen meters away from shore. _

_The two sat in comfortable silence together, looking out across the lake and admiring the view. Haruka noticed, with some envy, that there were small fish swimming near the surface of the water. He scrutinized them. They didn't __**look**__ mutated. How bad could the water be?_

_Christine smiled affectionately at him. Leaning her head on his shoulder, she murmured, "I wish we could walk on water."_

_He gazed down at her. "Why?"_

_ "__No need for a boat," she answered, then stifled a yawn. The hot afternoon sun had brought on a hint of drowsiness. "No need to get drenched in lake muck. But still as close to the water as one can get."_

_He decided to humor her. "Weren't you the one who introduced me to that verse, '_If you have faith even as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you'_?"_

_"__Ah, but that's a double edged sword," she replied, letting her eyes close as she lay against him. "For if you have __**doubt**__ even as small as a mustard seed, you could sink as Peter did."_

_Haruka was once again reminded of that time, long ago, when his best friend had almost drowned in the ocean despite his superb swimming skills._

_"__So it's a matter of trust, then?" he said._

_"__Mm-hmm," she murmured sleepily against his shoulder._

_"__Are you saying that you don't trust?" he asked then._

_She gave a light snort, not bothering to open her eyes. "I'm afraid I have not yet overpowered the part of my brain which insists that, if I step onto water, I will most likely sink." She yawned again, then quipped, "Maybe one day, when I'm older."_

_Haruka gazed longingly at the water. A sudden impulse overtook him, and he stood up. The boat rocked at his abrupt movement, and Christine nearly fell over at the absence of his shoulder from under her cheek. She looked up at him with wide eyes, now fully awake. _

_"__What are you doing?" she asked him, confused. No doubt she realized that if he was going to jump into the water, he would have already stripped down and done so by now. But instead, he was facing her. He extended a hand towards her._

_"__Stand with me," he said._

_Still looking puzzled, she obeyed, taking his hand and letting him pull her up to standing. No sooner was she on her feet than he immediately swept her off of them again, hooking his arms under her and picking her up. The boat rocked even more dangerously and Christine, in surprise and alarm, threw her arms around his neck to hold on tight. From the shore, several fishermen eyed them curiously._

_Christine blinked at Haruka from where she was being held, bridal style, in his arms. _

_"__Haru…" she began, before asking again, "What are you doing?"_

_"__Let's do it," he suggested._

_"__Do __**what**__?"_

_"__Walk on water."_

_She stared at him. "You can't be serious."_

_He gave her his signature serious expression. "I always am."_

_"__But—!"_

_"__O you of little faith," he began to quote in a monotone voice, "Why did you dou—"_

_"__You have __**got**__ to stop using that to get me to do things," she cut him off._

_He stopped then, and gave her one of his rare, small smiles. "Don't you trust me?" he asked, blue eyes boring holes into hers._

_He could see right away, in her eyes, that she had caught onto the subtext of his statement. She glanced at the murky water for a moment, then heaved a heavy sigh. Turning back to him, she gave him a bright yet tender smile._

_"__Yes, you fish," she told him. "I trust you."_

_And with that, he stepped over the edge of the boat…with her in his arms._

* * *

Christine didn't tell Haruka's friends all of that. But she gave them the basic gist; which was that the afternoon had started off with them on a date, and ended with him picking her up and jumping into a lake.

"Ah," said the bespectacled boy, when she had finished. "That would explain why your hair is wet."

"It would also explain why it took him this long to get a girlfriend," muttered the redhead.

"Where are our manners?" The brown-haired boy said suddenly. "We should introduce ourselves. I'm—"

"Ah! _Gomen_, _gomen_, Christine-chan!" the blonde interrupted frantically. "When you answered in Japanese, I assumed…but how silly of me, Haru-chan has told us before that you are American! Oh, we have wanted to meet you for a long time now! I'm—"

"Nagisa Hazuki, yes?" She smiled at him.

Nagisa beamed. "Haru-chan has told you about us?" he asked.

"Yes, that and I specifically remember you calling him four times in a row on his birthday, when I was taking him out to dinner."

Nagisa looked abashed, while the bespectacled boy gently harrumphed at him.

"I _told_ Nagisa-kun that Haruka-senpai was sure to be spending time with his girlfriend on his birthday," said the boy haughtily as he adjusted his glasses, "And that a text would be more appropriate, but he didn't listen. My calculations are always correct, but seldom heeded."

Christine laughed. "All is forgiven. I thought it was quite sweet that you all wished him a happy birthday. Now, let me see if I can remember your names…" She glanced over at a framed photograph on the desk, before turning back to each of them in turn. "You must be Makoto, the backstroker. Nagisa is the breaststroker. You're Rei the butterfly-er. And that leaves Rin, the…ah, erm," she floundered for a moment before finishing lamely, "…Australian?"

Rin smirked widely at this, revealing a sharp set of teeth. "Studying abroad here does not make me Australian."

She gave an embarrassed laugh. "Of course. Haru says that you specialize in two strokes. It's no wonder that they'd want you at their school. Anyway…it's a pleasure to meet you. All of you. _Hajimemashite_. "

"Please, call me Mako," said Makoto, beaming at her.

Behind him, Rei executed a very formal bow. "Very pleased to meet you, miss," he announced. Onscreen, Rin rolled his eyes while Makoto hid a smile behind his hand. Nagisa balled up a wad of paper from his desk and threw it at Rei's head.

"Stop being so formal!" he ordered. "She's American, they don't like that." To her, he said, "Yolo, bro!" and flashed the peace sign with a wink.

Christine tried her best to keep a straight face. "Yolo, Nagisa-chan," she said with feigned solemnity. She didn't have the heart to tell him that that was not a standard American greeting.

Instead, she asked, "Are the three of you roommates?"

"Rei-chan and I are!" Nagisa answered. "Mako-chan is visiting from his dorm. We attend the same university."

"I see," she said.

"Neh, Christine-chan," he went on, "Is Haru-chan giving you Japanese lessons? How do you know some phrases?"

Christine looked sheepish. "Er, no. I've been watching anime."

"Ehh?" Nagisa's eyebrows shot up. "You watch anime?"

"My boyfriend's from Japan, of course I watch anime," she joked.

"Oh?" Rin spoke up, a wicked gleam in his eye. "Haru is dating an otaku?"

"A what?" said Christine blankly.

"Rin, don't tease her," Makoto berated. To Christine, he said, "He is referring to a term generally used to describe a fan of anime or manga."

"Oh." She laughed. "I've only started watching recently. It think it's too early to call me a—what is it? _Otaku?_"

"_Hai!_" Nagisa agreed cheerfully. "In America they are called 'crazy fangirls', right Mako-chan?"

"Nagisa," Makoto warned.

"I've always said that all of us should have been in an anime," Nagisa went on. "We would've had many fans! And Haru-chan made the perfect tsundere—"

At that precise moment, Haruka entered the room, a towel over his head. He glanced at the screen upon hearing his name.

"Are they talking about me?" he asked Christine, pulling up a seat beside her.

"Yes," she answered honestly. "Nagisa just called you a tsunami, or something."

Rin burst out laughing.

"Haaaru-chan!" Nagisa greeted excitedly, just as Rei uttered a respectful "Haruka-senpai!" in salute.

Makoto smiled at his old friend. "Good to see you, Haru," he said warmly. Haruka, in turn, gave them all a brisk nod of acknowledgment.

"Cold as a fish, as usual," was Rin's greeting.

The boys onscreen laughed at the pun while Haruka glowered at them all. "We Skyped just last week," he stated. "Rei sends emails regularly. Makoto makes calls like he's my mother. Nagisa tags me in a Facebook post almost every other day. And you," he turned to Rin. "I see your idea of keeping in touch with a friend is to text your new time whenever you swim a personal best?"

Rin gave a sharp-toothed smirk. "And I see your idea of romancing a woman is to throw her into a body of water."

Haruka's cheeks colored very, very slightly. Christine noted this unusual display with great curiosity.

"I did not _throw_ her in," he said with a scowl. "We went in _together._"

Christine coughed. "Yes, it was very much consensual." Her boyfriend gave her a sharp look.

Rei spoke up. "It is only logical that Haruka-senpai would be with someone who has a high tolerance for water exposure. Are you a swimmer as well, Miss Christine?"

"No," she shook her head. "But I used to work as a lifeguard, back in high school."

Rei's brow furrowed. "The probability of Haruka-senpai becoming close with someone outside of the swim team is very low. Tell us, how did you two meet? He will not give us any details."

"Oh?" She cocked an eyebrow at her boyfriend. "Why is that?"

Haruka shrugged. "Too much effort."

Makoto smiled knowingly. "He wanted us to meet you for ourselves."

"And now we have!" Nagisa interjected impatiently, "So tell us the story already! How did you two start dating?"

"Actually we were friends for quite a while first," Christine began, before Nagisa cut her off.

"But how did you _meet_?"

"Technically we met in class," she explained. "But we never spoke to each other. Our first real meeting was at the pool."

Rin rolled his eyes. "Of course it was."

"Naturally he would be there," Makoto agreed. "But what were you doing there?"

"Well," said Christine, a twinkle in her eye, "I saved him from drowning."

There was a long beat of bewildered silence.

Finally, Rin slowly turned to Haruka. "Your girlfriend's a liar."

Haruka, who had been glaring at Christine after her little jest, now turned his glare on Rin. "She's just exaggerating," he told them. "Christine was passing by the pool and mistakenly thought I had drowned, when in fact I had just learned how to sink."

"_Learned_ how to sink?" Rei echoed in confusion.

"Yes." Haruka turned to Rei with a blank expression. "It appears not all of us are blessed with your natural talent."

Rei reddened and spluttered something in Japanese.

"Wait a second," Rin cut in, "You're saying that you were just laying there at the bottom of the pool?"

"Yes."

"And then she came along, thought you had drowned, and jumped in to pull you out?"

"Yep," Christine spoke up. "That's exactly what happened."

Rin threw his head back and roared with laughter. "That's exactly what _not_ to do to get him to like you," he guffawed. "What happened to you Haru? You used to want to kill anyone who so much as asked you to leave the pool after practice. And now she comes along and practically drags you out of the water?"

Haruka looked towards Christine and caught her eye, giving her the faintest hint of a smile. "I suppose that's forgivable," he said. "Given the circumstances."

She beamed at him. "What's forgivable?" she asked, echoing her words from months ago.

"Pulling me out of the water. Since…I might have kept sinking otherwise."

The boys watched this exchange between the couple in confusion. Rin clicked his tongue. "After all these years, Haru, I still have no idea what you're talking about half the time," he sighed. Turning to Christine, he jerked a thumb towards Haruka. "Just how do you put up with this guy?" he joked.

Haruka's expression quickly reverted back to one of impassivity as he turned away from Christine and back to the screen. "She is very patient," he explained tonelessly.

The other boy grinned. "_That_ much is clear. What other woman lets a guy toss her into a lake?"

"Well," said Christine, her thoughts traveling back to the events of that afternoon, "I wouldn't say 'toss,' exactly…"

* * *

_The couple dropped off the edge of the boat and into the water like a sinking stone. _

_Haruka kept a firm grip on Christine and they soon resurfaced, gasping for air. Fortunately, because they were not far from shore, his feet had found bottom. He now stood upright, with the water reaching to just over his shoulders and with Christine still in his arms. From land, a group of bystanders had stopped to gawk at them. _

_Christine lifted a curtain of wet hair out of her face. "Did that turn out the way you hoped and dreamed it would?" she asked dryly. _

_ "__Yes." He looked down at her. "I got a pretty girl to jump into a lake with me, didn't I?"_

_She stared at him for a minute, and then started laughing. "Oh? Were you planning from the start for things to work out this way?"_

_ "__No," he admitted, "But as I recall, '_All things work together for good to them that love God,_' yes?" He gave a small smirk. "Our doubt might have made us sink, but in the end I still got to be in the water with you."_

_ "__You're crazy," she told him, beaming._

_Months of spending time with her had emboldened Haruka to make the occasional cheesy remark, which he opted to do now. _

_"__About you," he responded without missing a beat._

_She smiled. Reaching up, she brought his head down to meet her lips with his own._

_From the shore, other park goers shook their heads at the young couple in the water. _

_Kids these days were nuts._

* * *

"You two make a great match," Makoto was saying. "I'm just happy that Haru's found a nice girl."

Haruka rolled his eyes. "You _are_ like my mother."

"Speaking of which," piped up Nagisa, "When are you going to bring her to visit Japan, Haru-chan?"

"Winter break," Haruka answered easily.

Christine nearly fell out of her chair. "Wait, what?!"

He turned to her, not looking the least bit fazed. "If you want to. Do you?"

"I—I—" she stuttered, passing rapidly from surprised, to pleased, to panicked. "Well it's a month long, so I suppose I could spend half of it with my family and the other half with your—your…" Suddenly overwhelmed, she put a hand over her eyes and groaned. "I don't know if I can handle meeting your parents when the only Japanese words I know how to say are 'hello,' 'sorry,' and 'crazy fangirl.'"

He raised an eyebrow at her. "How do you know how to say _that_?"

"Er…"

"Don't worry, Miss Christine," Rei spoke up. "We'd be happy to practice with you."

"We sure would be!" said Nagisa, a gleam in his eyes. "Let's start with the basics, Christine-chan. _Aishiteru!_"

Haruka glared at him.

"Oi, Nagisa-kun," Rei scolded. "You shouldn't say that to Haruka-senpai's girlfriend."

"Ah, _gomen, gomen_, Haru-chan," Nagisa apologized gleefully, not sounding the least bit sorry. "I suppose _you_ want to be the one teaching her that one, right?"

"_Aishite_-what?" said Christine blankly.

"Mahh, Haru," Makoto chided, sharing a grin with Nagisa. "You haven't said it to her yet?"

Rin rolled his eyes. "You two are like embarrassing parents," he said to Nagisa and Makoto.

Christine turned to Haruka. "What on earth are they talking about?"

He sighed. "Let's just humor the idiots." Turning to her, he slowly pronounced the phrase for her. "_Aishiteru._"

"Aww!" Nagisa cried exaggeratedly, while Rin said, "Somebody record this so we can sell it."

"_Urusai_," Haruka snapped at them. To Christine, he asked, "Do you need to hear it again?"

"Yes please," she said, a smile tugging at her lips. She was starting to get a vague idea of what the phrase might mean.

"_Aishiteru_," he said again.

"_Aishiteru_," she repeated back to him, slowly. "Was that right?"

"Yes," he replied, then added matter-of-factly, "It means 'I love you.'"

"I see," she said. "Good to know."

Haruka turned back to Nagisa. "Happy?"

"No." Nagisa pouted with disappointment. "Haru-chan is not romantic at all."

"This isn't a shoujo manga," said Haruka flatly.

"And Haru wouldn't know 'romantic' if it came up to him and punched him in the face," Rin added dryly.

Christine and Makoto both started to say something, probably in Haruka's defense, but Haruka beat them to it.

"You would know," he shot back at Rin, "Since you were the one always yammering on about 'romantic' things back when we were kids."

Rin grimaced. "_Urusai baka,_" he growled. "Don't bring up stupid stuff from the past."

"Speaking of stupid stuff from the past," said Nagisa cheerfully, "Did you know that Haru-chan's first love was a waterfall, Christine-chan?"

Christine had not known. But for some reason this information didn't seem as strange to her as it probably should have.

"Nagisa-kun!" Rei looked aghast. "Haruka-senpai told us that information in confidence!"

Haruka's eyebrow was twitching with irritation. "Don't just go telling her things like that," he gritted out.

Nagisa waggled his eyebrows. "Why, because you didn't want the two of them to find out about each other?"

Christine smirked. "Who, me and Niagara Falls?"

Haruka sighed heavily. "No. It wasn't Niagara Falls."

She grinned at him. "Oh? Then whoever it was, she must've been real special."

"It seems so unexpected though," interrupted Rei, who sounded thoughtful. "That Haruka-senpai's affections would switch from a waterfall to a woman."

"That is true," Makoto said, before addressing Haruka. "After all, you were always more interested in swimming than…well, having a girlfriend."

"_Hai, hai!_" Nagisa agreed. "So tell us, Haru-chan…what changed?"

Haruka was silent for a moment. At last, he said, "Christine…is like a water pitcher. She overflows with living water, and is constantly pouring out to others. That is better than any waterfall on earth."

Christine tried to refrain from grinning like an idiot, and failed miserably.

The boys just stared at him.

Rin turned to the others. "See? Does _anyone_ know what he's talking about when he starts talking like that?"

"Haru," said Makoto slowly. "Did you just call your girlfriend a water pitcher?"

"Is that an American term of endearment?" Nagisa wondered.

"There's no way that's an endearment in any language," Rei answered him, brow creased. "I guess Haruka-senpai just isn't very romantic after all…"

"No," said Christine, still smiling brightly enough to rival the sun. "It _is_ romantic. Very romantic. Because…because…the water is alive."

Rin facepalmed. "Great, they're _both_ crazy."

Nagisa chuckled good-naturedly. "Well, Ama-sensei would probably say that 'love makes fools of us all!'"

Makoto suddenly smiled at the couple. "I think I understand," he said slowly.

"I don't," Rei muttered. "I have never seen anything so illogical. I can only be thankful that something as irrational as love is not distracting me from my studies. Ah! No offense to Haruka-senpai and Miss Christine!" he amended hurriedly.

Makoto chuckled. "But you have to admit, Rei," he said to his friend, "That although what Haru and Christine have seems quite illogical, it is also quite…beautiful, no?"

Rei's eyes lit up at that word. "Yes," he acquiesced. "I cannot deny beauty when I see it."

"Ugh," said Rin with a hint of disgust. "Alright. As much as I'd love to keep on waxing poetic about Haru's relationship, I've got places to be." He straightened up, preparing to go. "Christine, it was nice to meet you. I'm sure we'll talk again. Everyone else, Skype again next week?"

"_Hai!_" chorused the three other boys onscreen.

Haruka nodded at Rin. "Later. And stop texting me your personal bests."

Rin gave his signature shark-like grin. "Never." He signed off.

"We should let you two go as well," said Makoto. "Since it's almost dinnertime where you are."

"Alright," agreed Haruka. "Goodbye."

"Bye!" said Christine. "It was great meeting you all."

"Likewise!" Nagisa bounced in his seat whilst giving them a wave. "Bye-bye, Haru-chan and Christine-chan!"

Rei gave another little bow. "I look forward to speaking with the both of you again."

Makoto also gave them a wave. "See you next time!"

The call ended.

"So…" Christine swiveled in her seat to face Haruka. "Japan, eh?"

His face didn't betray his thoughts. "If you like."

She smiled. "Then come meet my family too."

His eyes widened a fraction. "You mean…in New York?"

"Upstate New York, to be precise," she corrected. "But not just for them, although they'd love to meet you. There's someone else I'd like you to meet."

He cocked an eyebrow. "Who?"

She grinned widely. "Niagara Falls."

Haruka looked stunned.

"My hometown is thirty minutes away from it," she explained excitedly. "I want to take you to see it."

"I—you—" Haruka composed himself. "You'd let me go near Niagara Falls?"

"What, should I be afraid that you'll run off with her?" She laughed. "You know that I trust you." Leaning over, she gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "And I think you also know that if you were stupid enough to jump in, I'd be stupid enough to jump in and try to save you. Since that seems to be my thing."

"Well we can't have that," he answered, catching her by the hands before she could move away again. "I'm not losing you to a waterfall."

"Strange," she said. "That should be my line."

He leaned closer. "I'll come to New York," he said quietly. "But not because I want to see Niagara Falls."

"Oh?" Her lips quirked. "Then why?"

"Because…" He pressed his lips to her temple in a chaste kiss. "_Aishiteru._"

She smiled tenderly at him. "Back atcha."

"Alright, we'll work on your Japanese."

She smacked him lightly on the arm, before laughing. "I know you'll be busy your senior year," she said, running her fingers through his hair affectionately. "You don't have to teach me. I could just buy Rosetta Stone."

"You've taught me many things since I've known you," he told her. "Like, for example, '_Give, and it shall be given unto you_.' So let me give back by teaching you something, this time."

She smiled. "Alright. Though I should warn you, I'm pretty terrible at picking up new languages."

Haruka shrugged. "I'm pretty terrible at paying attention to anything for more than a minute."

"Yes, I recall," she noted dryly.

"Didn't seem to stop you, though," he observed.

She smirked. "Well, you know. '_I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me._' Including tutor someone with the attention span of a marmot that misplaced its Adderall."

"And including learning Japanese?" he prompted.

"_Hai_," she conceded.

"And…coming to Japan with me?"

She nodded. "If you're willing to meet my family, it's only fair that I meet yours."

Something about that statement seemed to finally register with Haruka. He cleared his throat. "By the way," he began tentatively, "Are your parents…will they be…_okay_ with me?

She lifted an eyebrow. "'Okay'?" she repeated.

"Well," he said, feeling awkward, "I recall you mentioning 'Bible-thumping parents' a while back."

She suddenly started laughing. "You mean, will they pour a bucket of holy water over you the minute you walk in the door, yell '_Amen! The Lord rebuke thee!_' and then bash you over the head with a crucifix?"

"Well, the water part would be okay…" he muttered.

Christine noticed his uncomfortable expression. She softened.

"Haru," she said gently. "Do you know why I love you?"

He lifted his eyes to hers, in a wordless invitation to continue.

"I've been surrounded by a lot of people my whole life who were a lot of talk and no action," she said. "People would talk my ear off about what it meant to 'live biblically.' Yet the only biblical things coming out of them were the verses that they kept repeating. You, however," she grinned at him, "Don't do a lot of talking. Yet your life has reflected a biblical nature that others have lacked."

Haruka guiltily thought back to the time he wanted to murder his roommate. "I think you're giving me too much credit," he said. "And besides, that only started happening after I met you."

"No," she disagreed. "It's always been in you. When you let your relay get disqualified at regionals. When you let yourself get disqualified in an individual event the year after that."

"How was any of that biblical?" he asked, baffled.

Christine answered, "I can't tell you the number of times people would quote to me, _'__Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven,'_ and then they'd turn right around and almost kill themselves trying to get the next big raise, or new car, or new house. Just because that's what they were expected to do. The world expected you to get a medal, pressured you to win a trophy. But you never fell into what the world wanted out of you."

Christine picked up the framed photograph on his desk. It was of Haruka and the four other boys they had just Skyped with, but there was no medal or trophy held between any of them. In fact, they were dressed in street clothes and weren't even at the pool. It was a simple picture of friends who were just smiling into the camera.

"You always strove to attain something of far greater value," she finished.

"You wouldn't have been more impressed if I went to the Olympics?" he half-joked.

She chuckled. "There's a part in Paul's letters that we never got to. He talks about Olympic athletes, how they center their whole lives around training just so they can win that laurel wreath they used to give out back then. I don't remember the exact words, but basically he says that if they're competing so hard just to receive a _'perishable crown', _than how much more important is it to strive for an _'imperishable crown'_?"

"And what is an 'imperishable crown?'" Haruka questioned.

"Something that lasts long after a medal or trophy has become tarnished." She handed him the photograph with a smile. "Long after prize money loses its value. Long after a world title is passed on."

Haruka looked down at the smiling faces of his friends in the picture. A beat passed.

"So…" he began. "What does this have to do with your parents?"

She sighed at how effectively he had just ended the moment. "My parents have also been surrounded by people who talk a lot about being biblical and don't actually live it. I think they'll appreciate someone who's the other way around, for once." She smiled brightly at him then. "They'll love you. Almost as much as I do."

He gazed at her for a long moment, trying to think of the proper words to respond with. He felt like he should produce some sort of grand speech in return, after everything she had just said. Something romantic. Something poetic. Something to show how much he truly did return that sentiment. But Haruka was not the sort of man who made long speeches, and Christine knew that. It had even become somewhat of a running gag between them, for him to find the most creative or roundabout ways to avoid saying "I love you" and yet still mean it. He was running out of ideas, however.

"I don't know what to say," he said honestly.

Christine just smiled. "You don't have to say anything. Didn't we just establish that?"

"Ah, right," he said. How could he have forgotten? "Actions speak louder than words."

Closing the gap between them, he brought his lips to hers in a holy kiss.

_**Fin.**_

_**(For real this time.)**_


End file.
